Archived: Fourways Nursing Home

Updated 20 November 2015

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.’

This was an unannounced inspection on 29 and 30 September 2015. It was undertaken by an inspector and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Before our inspection we reviewed the information we held about the home, including previous inspection reports. We contacted the local authority to obtain their views about the care provided. We considered the information which had been shared with us by the local authority and other people, looked at safeguarding alerts which had been made and notifications which had been submitted. A notification is information about important events which the provider is required to tell us about by law.

During the inspection we reviewed the records of the home. These included four staff files including staff recruitment. Training and supervision records, medicine records, complaint records, accidents and incidents, quality audits and policies and procedures along with information in regards to the upkeep of the premises.

We also looked at four care plans and risk assessments along with other relevant documentation to support our findings. We also ‘pathway tracked’ people living at the home. This is when we looked at their care documentation in depth and obtained their views on their life at the home. It is an important part of our inspection, as it allowed us to capture information about a sample of people receiving care.

During the inspection, we spoke with eleven people who lived at the home, two relatives, and twelve staff members including the owner and directors. We spoke with a visiting healthcare professional during the inspection and a further six healthcare professionals following the inspection.

We met with people who lived at Fourways nursing home; we observed the care which was delivered in communal areas to get a view of care and support provided across all areas. This included the lunchtime meals. As some people had difficulties in verbal communication the inspection team spent time sitting and observing people in areas throughout the home and were able to see the interaction between people and staff. This helped us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

Updated 20 November 2015

Fourways nursing home provides nursing and personal care for up to 21 people who were living with a range of complex health care needs. This included people who have, stroke, diabetes, acquired head injuries and Parkinson’s disease. Some people had a degree of memory loss associated with their age and physical health conditions. Most people required help and support from two members of staff in relation to their mobility and personal care needs.

Fourways Nursing Home is a family owned and family run home and the owner and directors all worked at the home.

Accommodation is provided over two floors with a stair lift that provided level access to all parts of the home. People spoke well of the home and visiting relatives confirmed they felt confident leaving their loved ones in the care of Fourways.

There is a registered manager at the home who was also the owner. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.

This was an unannounced inspection which meant the provider and staff did not know we were coming. It took place on 29 and 30 September 2015.

Staff knew people well, they were kind and caring and treated people with respect. They had a good understanding of their care needs and individual choices. However, the care records did not always include guidance for staff to ensure consistency.

Staff did not always follow the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. Mental capacity assessments were not in place and there was no information about how decisions were made.

The ethos of the home was to enable people to live their life to the maximum every day and this is what we observed. Staff had developed open and caring relationships with them.

Staff knew how to safeguard people from the risk of abuse. Risk assessments were in place and staff had a good understanding of the risks associated with the people they cared for. There were enough staff in place, who had been appropriately recruited, to meet the needs of people.

People were given choice about what they wanted to eat and drink, meals were nutritious and freshly cooked each day. People received the support they needed at mealtimes.

People had access to health care professionals for regular check-ups as needed. Medicines were stored, administered and disposed of safely.

Staff had undertaken essential training to meet the needs of people. They received regular one to one and group supervision. They told us they were well supported by the owner and other senior staff at the home.

The owner was aware of the day-to-day culture in the home as she worked directly alongside care staff and encouraged staff to talk to her openly. She worked tirelessly to ensure Fourways nursing home was a ‘real home’ for people. We saw staff were encouraged and supported to do the same.