Background to this inspection
Updated
26 February 2022
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control measures the provider has in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.
This inspection took place on 14 February 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection.
Updated
26 February 2022
About the service
St Martins Grange is a care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 75 people aged 65 and over. At the time of the inspection they were supporting 22 people. The service is split over two floors which were all accessible by stairs or a lift.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
The management of the service had experienced a long period of instability. Since the last inspection this had improved with the appointment of a management team including an experienced and enthusiastic registered manager. There were now robust governance systems which provided improved oversight and confidence in the quality of care people received.
A new accidents and incidents process had been introduced which was helping to reduce the risk of people coming to harm. Thorough analysis was helping to identify causes and trends with learning then shared with staff and the people affected.
Improved auditing was taking place in a number of areas including care plans, call bells, health and safety and infection prevention and control. At the previous inspection we noted identified actions were not always followed up. Action was now taken consistently.
People, relatives and staff spoke positively about the changes at the home and felt there was a joyful atmosphere and improved staff morale. People and relatives said they felt listened to and involved. They expressed confidence in the registered manager and deputy manager. A relative said, “It’s changed so much. It’s a fantastic home.”
Medicines were managed safely by staff who had received the necessary training and ongoing competency assessments. Where people’s needs changed timely referral was made to health and social care professionals including GPs, community nurses and dentists.
There were enough staff on duty. The home regularly completed a dependency tool to help match staffing levels to people’s needs. Staff received regular supervision and annual appraisals which were used as an opportunity to reflect on their practice, career aspirations and care industry developments.
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. Staff had a good understanding of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and how it translated into the care they provided for people.
People told us the staff treated them with kindness, respect and compassion. Our observations confirmed this. Staff had got to know people well which supported mutually beneficial interactions. One person said, “It’s marvellous here. They [staff] couldn’t do anything more for me.”
The home had established and maintained good working partnerships with other agencies and community organisations such as GP surgeries, a local authority quality improvement team and a dementia charity. The latter link demonstrated the home’s contribution to helping change society’s perception of people living with dementia.
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 9 July 2019).
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
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.