CQC report explained · a nursing home
What the CQC found at Bluebirds Neurological Care Centre
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors were assured that infection risks were managed through testing, personal protective equipment, cleaning, hygiene and visitor checks. They also found measures to reduce the effect of COVID-19-related staffing pressures.
- Effective?
- Good
- This area was not rated in this targeted inspection.
- Caring?
- Good
- This area was not rated in this targeted inspection.
- Responsive?
- Good
- This area was not rated in this targeted inspection.
- Well-led?
- Good
- This area was not rated in this targeted inspection.
What inspectors found, March 2022
Bluebirds Neurological Care Centre was inspected but not rated; inspectors found robust infection control and staffing measures.
This was a targeted, announced inspection on 24 February 2022. Inspectors looked mainly at infection prevention and control, visiting arrangements and whether COVID-19 staffing pressures affected care.
Inspectors found enough staffing arrangements to meet people's needs during a difficult situation. They also found strong infection control, including testing, personal protective equipment, hand hygiene, cleaning and checks on visitors.
The home was inspected but not rated. This means the report does not give an overall quality rating or ratings for the five areas of care. It is not a full assessment of every aspect of the home.
Staffing during pressure
The manager had taken steps to make sure staffing was sufficient, and staff worked flexibly during a difficult situation.
“Staff had worked flexibly and had gone above and beyond during a difficult situation to ensure people received safe care and support.” from the report
Visitor checks
Visitors faced several checks before entering, including booking, testing, vaccination evidence, hand washing and signing in.
“Visitors were subject to robust checks before they entered the service including a booking system, rapid LFD testing, showing evidence of vaccination and COVID-19 pass, hand washing and sign in process.” from the report
Infection control
Staff had infection control training and used personal protective equipment and hand hygiene measures. Supplies were available throughout the home.
“Staff received infection prevention and control (IPC) training and followed robust IPC procedures.” from the report
Clean environment
The home was clean and hygienic, with scheduled cleaning and disinfection of frequently touched surfaces.
“The environment was clean and hygienic, staff followed cleaning schedules which included regular cleaning and disinfection of high touch points, such as door handles, light switches and handrails.” from the report
Management checks
The manager carried out regular checks on infection control, supported by current policies and procedures.
“The registered manager had good oversight of infection prevention and control processes.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How do you currently manage staffing pressures, and how do you make sure people's needs continue to be met?
- 02What infection prevention and control checks are carried out now, and how often are they reviewed?
- 03What testing and personal protective equipment arrangements are currently in place for people, staff and visitors?
- 04How are visits arranged now, including visits by essential carers during any infection outbreak?
- 05How do you keep cleaning and disinfection of frequently touched surfaces up to date?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control, visiting arrangements and COVID-19-related staffing pressures; it was not a full inspection and the service was not rated. This explanation was written from the published report of 11 March 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.
What inspectors found, July 2018
Bluebirds Neurological Care Centre was rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with some records needing more consistent completion.
This was a comprehensive inspection on 13 and 17 April 2018. The first day was unannounced. Inspectors spoke with people living in the home, relatives and staff. They reviewed care records, staff recruitment records, training information, complaints and quality checks.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found enough suitably checked staff, safe medicines, clean surroundings and good support for people's health, nutrition, independence and activities.
People were treated with kindness and respect. Care plans were personalised and staff understood people's needs. The home had an open culture and systems to monitor quality. Some care records were not completed consistently, and managers said they would take action.
The home was also rated Good at the previous inspection in January 2016. Inspectors said the evidence continued to support this rating and found no serious risks or concerns.
Personalised support
People had individual support programmes designed to maintain their life skills, social skills and independence. These were overseen by a skilled team from different professional backgrounds.
“People were supported to develop and maintain life and social skills and maintain as much independence as possible, using individually created support programmes.” from the report
Safety and medicines
Inspectors found that people were protected from harm and that nurses managed medicines safely. Staff training, risk assessments and medicines records supported this.
“People were consistently protected from the risk of harm and received their prescribed medicines safely.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People and relatives described staff as caring. Inspectors saw staff treating people respectfully, protecting privacy and supporting personal choices.
“People told us they were treated with kindness and respect by all staff.” from the report
Health and therapy support
The home provided access to several types of therapy and worked with health professionals. Staff monitored people's health and recorded referrals and appointments.
“People were supported to access a wide variety of health and social care services.” from the report
Management oversight
The home had regular audits, management meetings and ways for people, relatives and staff to give feedback. Inspectors found that managers used this information to make improvements.
“Established quality assurance systems were in place to continually assess, monitor and evaluate the quality of people's care.” from the report
Care records
needs fixingSome records did not consistently show the care that people had received. This was discussed with managers, who agreed that staff practice and record completion needed to improve.
“some records would benefit from more consistent completion.” from the report
- 01What action was taken after the inspection to make care records more consistently complete?
- 02How will you record and check the care provided to my relative each day?
- 03How would you support my relative's particular neurological condition, including therapy and communication needs?
- 04What activities would be available that match my relative's interests and help maintain their independence?
- 05How would you keep my family informed about changes in my relative's health or care plan?
This was a second comprehensive inspection covering all five key questions; the first day was unannounced and relatives were contacted by telephone on the second day. This explanation was written from the published report of 13 July 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 Bluebirds Neurological Care Centre
2 rated inspections over 2 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- March 2022Inspected but not ratedcurrent ratingSafe: Inspected but not rated
Read what inspectors found at Bluebirds Neurological Care Centre →
- July 2018Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
Read what inspectors found at Bluebirds Neurological Care Centre →
- April 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- July 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- July 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- February 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 3 February 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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