Ridgewell House

Ridgewell House is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to up to 16 people. The service provides support to older people, some of whom may be living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 12 people using the service. The service accommodates people in one adapted building.

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

People were not always protected from the risk of harm. The service was not always well led. The quality assurance processes were not robust, and the provider did not always have complete oversight of the service.

The provider completed relevant recruitment checks for new staff; however, minor improvements were needed in the staff recruitment files to ensure they met with the requirements of the regulation. Improvements were required to some aspects of medicines management and actions to update their practice.

We have made recommendation to the provider around safe recruitment practises and about the management of some medicines.

The manager was new and committed to driving improvement. They responded to the concerns raised and sought to rectify them.

People were protected from the risk of abuse. Staff knew how to identify signs of abuse and felt comfortable raising concerns with the registered manager. 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.

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 good (published 31 March 2019)

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service. We undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

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 good to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

Follow up

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

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

We found the following examples of good practice.

The registered manager followed government guidance on COVID-19 testing for people who lived at the service and the staff team. This was reviewed as government guidance was amended.

The service was booking visitors in at a time that suited people and this was spaced out to help avoid potential infection transmission with other visitors. This included where people were at the end of their life.

The service had taken appropriate measures to screen visitors including temperature checks, a questionnaire, the wearing of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and rapid testing to keep infection risks to a minimum.

People were admitted to the service safely from both hospital and their own home. Their COVID-19 status was determined prior to admittance, and they self-isolated in-line with government guidance.

The staff team had received training relating to COVID-19, infection prevention and control and the correct use of PPE.

The staff team were observed using infection prevention practices, which included wearing masks, gloves and aprons when appropriate.

Ridgewell House is a residential care home for 16 people, some of whom may be living with dementia. On the day of our inspection 12 people were using the service. The service has spacious living areas and is set over two floors with a stair lift in place should this be needed. The service is set in a residential area with easy access to the local community and has a large garden. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

At our last inspection we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

People were cared for safely by staff who had been recruited and employed after appropriate checks had been completed. People’s needs were met by sufficient numbers of staff. Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. There were systems in place to minimise the risk of infection. Medication was dispensed by staff who had received training to do so.

People were safeguarded from the potential of harm and their freedoms protected. Staff were provided with training in Safeguarding Adults from abuse, Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People had sufficient amounts to eat and drink to ensure that their dietary and nutritional needs were met. The service worked well with other professionals to ensure that people's health needs were met. The environment was appropriately designed and adapted to meet people’s needs.

Staff were well trained and attentive to people's needs. Staff could demonstrate that they knew people well. Staff treated people with dignity and respect.

People and their relatives were involved in the planning and review of their care. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis and when there was a change in care needs. People were provided with the opportunity to participate in activities which interested them. People knew how to make a complaint should they need to. People were provided with the appropriate care and support at the end of their life.

The manager had a number of ways of gathering people’s views, they held regular meetings with people and their relatives and used questionnaires to gain feedback. The manager carried out quality monitoring to help ensure the service was running effectively and to make continual improvements.

Relatives who completed surveys as part of the home's quality monitoring process were complimentary about the care provided at Ridgewell House. One relative said: 'We are more than happy with the care and love given to [our relative].' Another relative said: 'This home is very welcoming and caring.'

Staff listened to people and treated them with respect. It was evident that staff knew people well and understood their individual needs. People received care and support that was person-centred and caring.

On the day of our inspection we saw that people enjoyed their lunch and we saw that there were processes in place to ensure that people received appropriate nutrition to meet their specific needs.

The manager followed robust recruitment and training procedures to make sure staff had the skills and knowledge to care for people safely.

The provider had processes in place to seek the opinions of people who used the service and they carried out checks to monitor quality and safety in the home.

Improvements had been made to records which contained the information staff needed to deliver care safely.

We observed people enjoying their meal and the choices on offer. We found the property to be welcoming, clean and suitable for the people living here. Staff told us they were happy working here and had support to develop professionally. Recent changes to management were making positive improvements according to both staff and relatives of people living here.

A suitable programme of further improvements was taking place and people living here, staff and families are all involved in decision making about these changes.