Castlemaine Care Home

Updated 6 June 2023

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

This inspection was undertaken by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

Castlemaine Care home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Castlemaine Care Home is a care home without nursing care. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We reviewed documentation, inspected the safety of the premises, and carried out observations in communal areas. We met and spoke with 12 people who used the service about their experiences of the care and support they received. We spoke with 8 members of staff including the registered manager, and care staff, and 3 visitors.

We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us. This was undertaken in the communal areas of Castlemaine Care Home.

We looked at a range of records. This included the care records for 5 people, medicine records and 4 staff files in relation to recruitment. Policies and procedures, environmental safety and information relating to the governance of the service were also reviewed. We also spoke 3 healthcare professionals during the inspection process.

Updated 6 June 2023

About the service

Castlemaine Care Home is registered to provide care, support, and accommodation for up to 42 people. There were 23 people living in the service when we visited. People cared for were mainly older people who were living with dementia and with a range of care needs, including arthritis, diabetes, and heart conditions. Most people needed support with their personal care, eating, drinking or mobility.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

The provider’s governance systems had improved since the last inspection in May 2022 and systems were being used consistently to drive improvement within the service. Improvements had been made, however were still areas that needed to be further developed to ensure people's safety and well-being.

People received safe care and support by staff trained to recognise signs of abuse or risk and understood what to do to safely support people. People had care plans and risk assessments which meant people’s safety and well-being was promoted and protected. Medicines given safely to people by appropriately trained staff, who had been assessed as competent. The home was clean, and comfortable. There were enough staff to meet people's needs. Safe recruitment practices had been followed before staff started working at the home. Accidents and incidents were recorded, and lessons learnt to prevent re-occurrences.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The home had an effective management team which provided good leadership for staff and communicated effectively with people, relatives and professionals. The management team was approachable and visible to people, staff, and visitors. Staff were positive about their roles and felt valued for the work they did.

The views of people who lived at the home, their relatives and staff were encouraged and acted upon by the management team. People and their relatives felt able to raise any concerns they had and were confident these would receive an appropriate response.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 01 June 2022).

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve.

At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 28 April 2022. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improvements the safe care and treatment and the governance of the service.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led which contain those requirements.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from Requires Improvement to Good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Castlemaine Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.