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CQC report explained · a nursing home

What the CQC found at Beechwood House

Goodpublished 16 October 2018, 7 years ago

Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.

The latest report, explained

What inspectors found, January 2022

Inspected but not rated; inspectors found good infection control arrangements and support for visits during the COVID-19 outbreak.

This was a targeted inspection on 19 January 2022. Inspectors checked infection prevention and control arrangements during a COVID-19 outbreak and asked about staffing pressures.

The inspectors were assured that the home was using protective equipment safely, arranging testing, managing admissions, supporting visits and keeping its infection control policy up to date. They were also assured that vaccination requirements for staff and visiting professionals were being met.

The home supported essential care giver visits and had set up a testing cabin for visitors. Staff were described as working together and supporting people during the pandemic.

The home was inspected but not rated. This means the visit did not give a Good, Requires improvement or Inadequate rating.

What inspectors praised
  • Infection control

    Inspectors were assured that the home had arrangements covering protective equipment, testing, hygiene, social distancing and outbreak management.

    “We were assured that the provider was making sure infection outbreaks can be effectively prevented or managed.” from the report
  • Supporting essential visits

    The home promoted essential care giver visits and continued to support them during the COVID-19 outbreak.

    “Staff had continued to support visits by ECGs during the outbreak of COVID-19 at the service” from the report
  • Visitor testing cabin

    A testing cabin gave visitors a warm place to wait and also helped a healthcare appointment take place without the professional entering the home.

    “A cabin had been set up on the front drive, which visitors could use for testing.” from the report
  • Team support

    The report says staff felt valued and worked together to support people and each other during the pandemic.

    “Staff felt valued and had worked together to support people and each other during the pandemic.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about

Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.

Questions to ask them, based on this report
  1. 01What is the home's current overall CQC rating, given that this inspection was not rated?
  2. 02What infection control arrangements are now in place for visitors and essential care givers?
  3. 03How are staff shortages or sickness managed, and have staffing pressures affected people's care?
  4. 04Is the visitor testing cabin still available, and how are healthcare appointments supported?
  5. 05How does the home currently check vaccination or exemption requirements for staff and visiting professionals?

This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control and COVID-19-related staffing pressures; it did not rate the overall service or the other four questions. This explanation was written from the published report of 29 January 2022 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.

An earlier report, explained

What inspectors found, October 2018

Beechwood House: Rated Good; inspectors found kind, safe and responsive care, with medicines management improved since the previous inspection.

This was an unannounced inspection on 29 and 30 August 2018. Inspectors spoke with people living at the home, relatives, staff and health and social care professionals. They observed care, activities and a lunchtime, and checked care, staff, medicines and management records.

The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found enough staff, safe medicines processes, suitable training and good support with healthcare, food, activities and end of life care.

The previous inspection found a breach because medicines were not always managed safely. At this inspection, inspectors found that this had improved and the breach had ended. The provider could not complete its usual information return because of technical problems, and inspectors took this into account.

What inspectors praised
  • Medicines improved

    The home had addressed the medicines problems found at the previous inspection. Staff training, competency checks, stock checks and medicines audits were in place.

    “At this inspection, we found that the management of medicines had improved, and there was no longer a breach of regulation.” from the report
  • Kind and respectful care

    Inspectors found that staff took time to understand people and support them in a sensitive way. People's privacy, dignity and independence were respected.

    “People were treated with kindness, respect and compassion.” from the report
  • Activities suited to people

    Activities were adapted for different interests and abilities, including people who spent much of their time in bed or in their rooms. People were supported to take part at their own level.

    “Activities were adapted to people's interests and abilities.” from the report
  • Thoughtful end of life support

    The home recorded people's wishes about their final days and supported relatives and staff as well as the person receiving care.

    “End of life care was innovatively supported by the service.” from the report
  • Action to reduce falls

    The home reviewed when and where falls happened and changed staffing and checks at night. Inspectors found that falls reduced during the period reviewed.

    “From January to July 2018 the number of falls per month had reduced from 16 to 6, due to the analysis and action taken.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about

Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.

Questions to ask them, based on this report
  1. 01How are medicines checked now, and how do you make sure records show every dose given?
  2. 02How do you assess and respond to my relative's risks, including falls, pressure damage and night-time risks?
  3. 03Which activities would be suitable for my relative's interests, abilities and level of dementia?
  4. 04How would you record and follow my relative's wishes about end of life care and who should be involved?
  5. 05How will you involve me and my relative in care planning, reviews and decisions about the service?

This was an unannounced inspection covering all five CQC areas and the overall quality of the home; the previous inspection in September 2016 had found a medicines breach that inspectors said had been resolved. This explanation was written from the published report of 16 October 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.

The story over the years

Every inspection of Beechwood House

3 rated inspections over 2 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.

  1. January 2022Inspected but not ratedcurrent rating
    Safe: Inspected but not rated

    Read what inspectors found at Beechwood House →

  2. October 2018Goodstayed Good
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good

    Read what inspectors found at Beechwood House →

  3. December 2016Goodstayed Good
    Safe: Requires improvement

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  4. October 2016Good
    Safe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  5. October 2014

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  6. August 2013

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  7. February 2013

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  8. April 2011

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  9. January 2011

    Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 19 January 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.

Next steps

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