What the CQC found at Drovers House

Inspectors saw staff taking time, showing patience and using suitable communication with people living with dementia.

“Warm, empathetic and respectful interactions were observed between staff and people.” from the report

Care records included people's preferences, life history and routines. People and relatives were involved in planning care.

“Care records were personalised to meet individual needs and included people's preferences on how they wanted to spend their time.” from the report

The home provided regular group activities, one-to-one sessions and opportunities to maintain interests and relationships.

“Group activities were organised daily. Activities included coffee mornings, scheduled exercises, social groups and clubs, daily games and reminiscence.” from the report

Acoustic monitoring was used with people's agreement to reduce unnecessary disturbance at night. The provider's analysis showed fewer night-time falls after it was introduced.

“The benefit of the system was that staff no longer checked people at night by opening their bedroom doors and disturbing them.” from the report

The provider had introduced new checks for medicines, risks, healthcare and staffing, with actions recorded in an improvement plan.

“All actions from audits were added to an improvement plan the manager and provider oversaw.” from the report

Some relatives and staff were unsure whether there had always been enough staff. The provider said vacancies had led to temporary staff use, although inspectors found enough staff during their visits.

“We received mixed feedback from relatives and staff about whether there were enough staff to safely meet people's needs and preferences.” from the report

The provider said there had been several medicines errors in the previous year. New procedures, staff retraining and daily checks had been introduced before the inspection.

“The provider had recognised there had been a number of medicines errors in the previous year.” from the report

The registered manager had been away for several months and relatives and staff gave mixed views about how the home had been managed during that period. A new interim team was in place.

“We received mixed feedback from relatives and staff about whether the home had been well managed during the previous year, due to the absence of the registered manager.” from the report