A nursing home in a Chester suburb requires improvement, the Care Quality Commission believes.
The conclusion was reached by a team of four adult social care inspectors who made an unannounced two day visit to Crawford’s Walk nursing home run by Bupa Care Homes on Lightfoot Street, Hoole.
The commission says the inspection was planned to check whether BUPA was meeting the legal requirements and regulations
The inspectors found that within the overall rating the main aspects of safety, effectiveness and whether the service was caring, responsive and well led all required improvement.
The nursing home comprises four purpose-built units with Northgate caring for people with enduring mental health illness issues, Watergate and Eastgate those living with dementia and Bridgegate providing care for those with physical health needs.
As part of their visit, the inspectors spoke with 10 of the people living in the home, 13 relatives, 13 staff and the manager. Other activities included reviewing documents, care plans and medication records.
The commission says that at an inspection in March this year it found that there were a number of improvements needed in relation to residents ‘being at risk of receiving inappropriate care, unsafe care and treatment’ due to a lack of information and risks associated with unsafe premises.
BUPA was asked to make a number of improvements and said they would meet all the relevant legal requirements by the end of June. The commission says, however, that in September although some improvements had been made, BUPA had not fully met their own action plan.
"I couldn't feel safer"
People spoken to during the recent inspection said they felt safe and told the inspectors: “I couldn’t feel safer, I am not just happy here I’m delighted, it’s great.”
Relatives commented they were reassured that when they left the service their loved ones were in good hands and would be well looked after.
All of the people spoken with said there were enough staff working in the home although there were periods of time where the lounge on Watergate was left unsupervised meaning people were at risk of potential harm
Staff showed an understanding of their responsibilities but procedures and documentation did not reflect why and how complex decisions for people who may lack capacity had been made in their best interests.
People who lived in Northgate, Eastgate and Bridgegate were treated with dignity and respect but those in Watergate were not always supported or treated in a dignified manner.
Care plans, including risk assessments, did not always record people’s needs accurately.
Records on all units ‘were not personalised to reflect people’s individual preferences or how they would like their care and support to be provided’.
Accidents and incidents were monitored to identify risks and trends and to help ensure the care provided was safe and effective.
The inspectors found people received their care from staff who were of suitable character and who attended regular training sessions to update their knowledge and skills. Access to dementia awareness training was recommended.
BUPA says the home is to have a full refurbishment within 12 months.
Debbie Westhead, CQC’s deputy chief inspector for adult social care in the north, said: ““People are entitled to services which provide safe, effective, compassionate and high quality care. If that is what we find on inspection we give the service a rating of Good, or Outstanding.
“If we find that a service requires improvement, we will expect them to provide us with a full plan setting out how they will address the issue. We will share our findings with local commissioners and we will return in due course to check that they have made the required improvements.”
A spokesperson for the home said: "The wellbeing of our residents is our absolute priority."The CQC inspectors recognised that that our staff were caring and treated residents with kindness and respect, and residents felt they were safe. Also, that medicines are administered and stored safely.“But we acted immediately and are committed to putting in whatever resources are needed to make further progress."
