CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Amberwood Care Home Limited
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
What inspectors found, May 2019
Amberwood Care Home Limited is rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care after earlier concerns were addressed.
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection on 29 April 2019. Inspectors spoke with people living in the home, visitors, staff and a healthcare professional. They also observed care and checked care records, medicines, training, recruitment and quality checks.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found enough staff overall, safer medicines systems, regularly reviewed risk assessments and kind, respectful care. People had personalised care plans, choices about their support and access to activities and healthcare.
The previous inspection had rated the home Requires Improvement and found three legal breaches. At this inspection, inspectors said the necessary improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach. The CQC said it would continue to monitor the home through the information it receives.
Safer care systems
Risks were assessed and reviewed when people's needs changed. Medicines were stored, administered and recorded using safe procedures.
“People were supported to have their medicines in a safe way at the right times.” from the report
Kind and respectful staff
People described staff positively, and inspectors observed caring and friendly interactions. Staff supported privacy, dignity, choice and independence.
“People felt they were cared for by kind and respectful staff.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans included information about people's preferences, communication needs, interests and wellbeing. Activities were adapted to individual hobbies and choices.
“People had plans of care that had been developed on admission.” from the report
Improved leadership
The home had introduced monitoring systems and audits to check safety and quality. The previous legal breaches had been addressed by this inspection.
“Effective monitoring systems were in place to check both the safety and the quality of the service.” from the report
Moving and handling practice
needs fixingInspectors saw one staff member manoeuvring a wheelchair in a way that did not follow best practice. The manager addressed this with staff and arranged spot checks.
“We observed one staff member manoeuvring a wheelchair not in line with best practice.” from the report
Limited equipment storage
minorSome wheelchairs and hoists were kept in a corridor because there was not enough storage space. The manager had plans to create more storage.
“We saw solitary wheelchairs and hoists in the corridor as there was insufficient storage space for all equipment.” from the report
Incident learning system still developing
minorStaff knew how to report accidents and incidents, and lessons were shared. However, the system for analysing incidents was still being developed.
“The registered manager was developing a comprehensive system to analyse these.” from the report
- 01What did the spot checks show after the wheelchair manoeuvring issue was identified?
- 02Has the planned additional storage for wheelchairs and hoists now been created?
- 03How are accidents and incidents analysed, and how are lessons shared with staff?
- 04How do you check that staffing levels continue to meet people's changing needs?
- 05What improvements have been sustained since the previous inspection?
This was a comprehensive inspection covering all five CQC questions, including the premises and care provided. This explanation was written from the published report of 15 May 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.
What inspectors found, May 2018
Amberwood Care Home Limited is rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind and personalised care, but serious problems with staffing, safety checks, medicines and management oversight.
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection on 1 and 2 February 2018. One inspector and two experts by experience spoke with people, relatives and staff. They observed care and checked care records, medicines records, staff files, rotas, complaints, incidents and quality checks.
The home provided kind, respectful and personalised care. People were supported with food, healthcare, activities and decisions about their care. The ratings were Good for Effective, Caring and Responsive.
The home was not always safe or well-led. Some areas were accessible despite risks from hot water, equipment and hazardous substances. Staffing was not always enough, medicines records were incomplete in places, and quality checks had not identified or acted on important problems. The home breached three regulations.
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors observed warm and kind interactions. People and relatives described positive relationships with staff.
“We observed that staff treated people with warmth and kindness.” from the report
Personalised care
Care plans contained detailed information about people's needs and preferences. People and relatives were involved in setting up and reviewing care.
“People received individualised and person centred care that met their needs.” from the report
Food and healthcare
People were supported to eat and drink enough, with referrals to health professionals where needed. They could choose what and where to eat.
“People were supported to eat and drink enough to maintain a balanced diet.” from the report
Infection control
Staff followed infection control procedures, including using gloves and aprons. The home had a five-star food hygiene rating.
“People were protected from the risks of infection as the provider had infection control procedures that staff followed.” from the report
Environmental safety
seriousPeople, including those living with dementia or confusion, could access the kitchen, laundry and other areas with hot equipment and hazardous substances. Risk assessments and controls were not in place.
“People were also at risk of infection from accessing dirty clothing and bedding in the laundry.” from the report
Staffing and call bell delays
seriousThere were not always enough staff to respond promptly. Inspectors found that 26 of 62 recorded calls took more than five minutes to answer, including 10 over 10 minutes and two over 20 minutes.
“People were not receiving their care in a timely way as staff had not been sufficiently deployed to provide their care.” from the report
Medicines records
needs fixingSome as-needed medicines did not have clear protocols or administration times recorded. Missing information sheets and an unsigned medicines record also created risks.
“Not all processes were in place to ensure that people received their medicines safely.” from the report
Weak quality monitoring
seriousThe provider had not used its monitoring systems well enough to identify and improve staffing, safety, care plan and medicines problems. Feedback and complaints were not analysed for themes.
“The provider had not ensured there were sufficient processes in place to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the care provided.” from the report
- 01What staffing levels are in place now, and how do you adjust them when people's needs or dependency change?
- 02How quickly are call bells answered now, and can you show us recent records of response times?
- 03How are the kitchen, laundry, equipment cupboards and attic kept safe for people who may be confused or at risk?
- 04How do you check that as-needed medicines are given at safe intervals and that administration times are recorded?
- 05How are complaints, residents' feedback and staff feedback analysed and turned into action?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five key questions; the previous comprehensive inspection in November 2015 rated the home Good. This explanation was written from the published report of 9 May 2018 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 Amberwood Care Home Limited
3 rated inspections over 3 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- May 2019Goodcurrent ratingup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- May 2018Requires improvementdown from GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- January 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- December 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- October 2010
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 1 October 2010.
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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