Archived: The Whitehouse Residential Home

Updated 19 June 2021

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.

As part of CQC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 10 June 2021 and was announced.

Updated 19 June 2021

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

The Whitehouse can accommodate up to 33 people that require accommodation and personal care. The home comprises of two buildings, one of which accommodates people living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 28 people using the service.

There was a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At our last inspection in April 2016 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 on-going 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 living in the service told us they felt safe. There were enough staff available to care for people safely and we observed staff provide care to people in a timely way. We saw staff were kind and caring. They promoted and respected people’s cultural and spiritual needs.

We saw the service used effective recruitment procedures which helped to keep people safe. Staff also completed a thorough induction and received regular training to support them in their roles. Staff said they had been provided with safeguarding vulnerable adults training so they had an understanding of their responsibilities to protect people from harm.

There were effective procedures in place for the safe management and administration of medicines. Staff competency was checked to ensure people received their medicines safely.

People’s care was reviewed to ensure they received the correct level of care and support. People were supported to have maximum control and choice over their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. Policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People’s healthcare needs were met. They had access to community based healthcare professionals, such as GPs, and they received medical attention when needed.

People, their relatives and the staff all spoke highly of the registered manager. Staff told us the registered manager was always available if they needed support. The registered manager completed regular audits of the service to make sure action was taken and lessons learned when things went wrong. This meant systems were in place to support the continuous improvement of the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.