CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Acorn Lodge Care Home
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Risks to people's health and wellbeing were assessed and staff had clear guidance on how to reduce them. Inspectors also found enough staff and safe medicines and infection control arrangements.
- Effective?
- Good
- People's needs were assessed and care plans were reviewed. Staff received induction and training, people had access to healthcare, and nutritional risks were monitored.
- Caring?
- Good
- People and relatives described staff as kind, respectful and compassionate. Staff supported choice, dignity, privacy and independence.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans reflected people's preferences, routines and communication needs. Inspectors found a wide range of activities, community trips and an effective complaints process.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The home had regular audits and checks, improved records and a culture of continuous improvement. People, relatives and staff were encouraged to give feedback.
What inspectors found, April 2023
Acorn Lodge Care Home is rated Good; inspectors found kind, safe and well-organised care, with significant improvements since the previous inspection.
Inspectors visited unannounced on 16 March 2023. They spoke with people living in the home, relatives, staff and healthcare professionals. They also observed care and checked care records, medicines records, training, recruitment and quality checks.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found that risks and medicines were managed safely, people received timely healthcare, and staff treated people with kindness, dignity and respect.
Care plans and records had improved and reflected people's changing needs. There were enough staff, a choice of food and a wide range of activities. The home also had systems for checking quality and acting on problems.
The previous inspection, published in August 2019, rated the home Requires Improvement and found breaches of regulations. At this inspection, inspectors found that improvements had been made and the home was no longer in breach.
Improved oversight
Inspectors found that the provider had responded to problems identified at the previous inspection. Regular checks and clearer records were helping to improve care.
“There had been significant improvements since our last inspection.” from the report
Kind and respectful staff
People, relatives and inspectors described care that was compassionate, patient and respectful. Staff supported people to make choices and remain as independent as possible.
“People were supported by staff who were kind, caring and compassionate.” from the report
Safe care and medicines
Risks were assessed and care records guided staff on how to keep people safe. Medicines were ordered, stored, given and recorded safely.
“Medicines were managed safely and in line with good practice standards.” from the report
Good healthcare links
Staff identified changes in people's health and worked with healthcare professionals. Relatives and professionals gave positive feedback about communication and partnership working.
“People received timely access to healthcare when they needed it.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01The report says 73% of staff had completed the Care Certificate. What training is still outstanding, and when will it be completed?
- 02How will you make sure my relative's care plan is reviewed whenever their needs, preferences or health change?
- 03How many staff are normally on duty on each floor, and how do you adjust staffing when people's needs change?
- 04Which activities and community trips would be suitable for my relative, including if they prefer to spend time in their bedroom?
- 05How will my family be involved in residents' meetings and in giving feedback about care, food and activities?
This was an unannounced inspection that assessed all five key questions and included infection prevention and control checks. This explanation was written from the published report of 6 April 2023 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.
What inspectors found, August 2019
Acorn Lodge Care Home was rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind care and some improvements, but serious problems with risk management and records.
Inspectors made an unannounced visit on 08 July 2019. They spoke with people, relatives and staff, observed care, and reviewed care, medicine, food and drink, training and management records.
The home was not consistently safe, effective, caring, responsive or well-led. Medicines were sometimes left accessible, risk plans and care records were incomplete or conflicting, and some people did not receive the support they needed at mealtimes.
There were also positive findings. People generally had access to healthcare, staff were usually kind, the home was clean and staffing had stabilised. However, the provider had not yet made the improvements needed reliable and lasting.
The overall rating was Requires Improvement. All five question ratings were also Requires Improvement. This was worse than the previous Good rating, published on 26 January 2017.
Staffing had stabilised
The provider had recruited staff after a period of high staff turnover and agency dependence. Inspectors found there was a full allocation of staff overall.
“Since May 2019, the provider's staff team had stabilised” from the report
Access to healthcare
People were supported to see GPs, dentists, opticians and district nurses when needed.
“People were supported to access healthcare professionals such as GPs, dentists and opticians.” from the report
Kind interactions
Inspectors saw staff showing respect and patience in some interactions. People and relatives generally described staff positively.
“Overall, positive caring interactions took place between people and staff, and people felt well cared for.” from the report
Clean environment
The home was clean and tidy, and staff understood the importance of infection prevention.
“Staff understood the importance of infection prevention and used Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as plastic aprons and gloves when needed.” from the report
Medicines were left accessible
seriousA medication room was left unlocked and unattended, and an open medicine trolley was also left accessible. This created a risk of harm.
“Medicines were not always stored safely, which posed risks of harm to people.” from the report
Risk information was missing
seriousSome people did not have risk management plans, and staff did not always have the right guidance about eating, drinking, falls or skin care.
“Risks were not always well managed.” from the report
Care records were inaccurate
seriousCare plans and daily records sometimes conflicted or lacked important information. Audits had not identified or dealt with these problems quickly enough.
“The provider did not maintain an accurate, complete or contemporaneous record for people.” from the report
Mealtime support was inconsistent
needs fixingOn the first floor, staff were not always organised enough to help people eat. One person's meal was left for 20 minutes even though their care plan said they needed full assistance.
“One person's meal was placed in front of them and was left for twenty minutes before staff were available to assist them.” from the report
Dignity was not always protected
needs fixingInspectors saw a person's clothing expose their continence pad during a hoist transfer. Staff did not use an available dignity blanket.
“However, people's dignity was not consistently maintained by staff.” from the report
Activities were limited that day
needs fixingPeople with higher care needs had fewer opportunities to engage with staff or activities during the inspection visit. Some people spent the day staring ahead.
“We observed those people with higher levels of care needs experienced less opportunity to engage with staff or activities.” from the report
- 01How are medicines now kept secure, including when the medication room or medicine trolley is not being used?
- 02How do you make sure every person has a clear, current risk plan that staff can find and follow?
- 03How have you corrected conflicting care records and checked that the changes are accurate and complete?
- 04How do you ensure people who need help with eating or drinking receive that help promptly at mealtimes?
- 05What changes have been made to activities and support for people with higher care needs?
This was an unannounced planned inspection covering all five CQC questions, including the premises and the care provided. This explanation was written from the published report of 14 August 2019 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.
Every inspection of Acorn Lodge Care Home
4 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- April 2023Goodcurrent ratingup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- August 2019Requires improvementdown from GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: Requires improvementResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- January 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- December 2014GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- November 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- October 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 11 October 2011.
Ratings and report dates from the Care Quality Commission, Open Government Licence v3.0. A home can also be visited without a new rating being published, so the timeline shows published inspections.
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