Archived: Seymour Care Home

Updated 1 April 2022

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 Care Act 2014.

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

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors.

Service and service type

Seymour Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We also reviewed the providers ‘report of actions’ that had been sent to us following previous inspections. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

During the inspection

We spoke with four people who lived at Seymour Care Home about their experience of the care provided. We also 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. We also spoke with four relatives by telephone.

We spoke with six members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager, senior carers and care assistants.

We reviewed a range of records including care plans and records associated with medicines management. A variety of records related to the quality, safety and management of the service were also reviewed.

After the inspection

The provider sent us documentary evidence in respect of improvements that had been made to care plans and policies and procedures.

Updated 1 April 2022

About the service

Seymour Care Home is residential care home located in East Manchester. The home is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide personal care and accommodation for up to 27 people over the age of 65, including people living with dementia.

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

At this inspection we identified three breaches of regulations in relation to safe care and treated, dignity and respect, and good governance. We have also made two recommendations in relation to medicines management and responsibilities around duty of candour.

We reviewed the care records for eight people who were identified to us as having additional needs in relation to eating and drinking. We found risks associated with eating and drinking were not always managed safely. This placed people at risk of harm.

Staff were not organised, supervised and deployed effectively. There was an absence of visible leadership and management 'out on the floor'. This meant there were lost opportunities to challenge poor practice and to lead by example.

The management of people’s medicines was not consistent and failed to follow national best practice guidance. A variety of issues were identified in relation to Medicines Administration Records (MAR), medicines prescribed to be given ‘as and when required’ and for medicines that were given to people covertly in food or drink.

We completed several formal periods of observation in communal areas and saw that staff did not always interact with people in a caring or compassionate manner. We also found care and support provided to people had become task-and-time oriented with no meaningful effort made by staff to positively engage with people other than when delivering care related tasks.

There had been a deterioration in systems and processes which previously had enabled lessons to be learned and practice changed to improve care. This is evident from the deterioration in quality and safety found at this inspection and a failure to sustain previous improvements.

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 overall rating for this service at the last inspection was Good (published 16 July 2021). At this inspection the overall rating has deteriorated to Requires Improvement.

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part by notification of a specific incident. Following which a resident of the care home died. This incident is subject to an ongoing investigation. As a result, this inspection did not examine the specific circumstances of the incident.

We also looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

Enforcement

We have identified three breaches of regulations in relation to safe care and treated, dignity and respect, and good governance. Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to discharge our regulatory enforcement functions required to keep people safe and to hold providers to account where it is necessary for us to do so.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.