CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Hope Lodge Care Home
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
What inspectors found, February 2021
Hope Lodge Care Home was inspected but not rated; inspectors found good infection control during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was a targeted inspection on 28 January 2021. It looked only at infection prevention and control measures during the coronavirus pandemic. The inspection was announced so the home could provide information about its COVID-19 practices.
Inspectors found the home was clean and well ventilated. Staff used protective equipment correctly, followed social distancing guidance and received training about protective equipment. People living at the home and staff received regular COVID-19 tests.
The home was inspected but not rated. This means the report does not give an overall quality rating or full ratings for the five areas of care. It is a snapshot of infection control arrangements at that time.
Clean and ventilated home
Inspectors found the home clean and well ventilated, with a safe process for managing laundry.
“The home was clean and well ventilated. There was a safe process to manage people's laundry.” from the report
Correct use of protective equipment
Staff were observed using protective equipment correctly and had received relevant training.
“We observed staff wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) correctly. Staff received training in relation to PPE.” from the report
Regular COVID-19 testing
People living at the home and staff received regular COVID-19 tests in line with government guidance.
“Staff and people at the home received regular COVID-19 tests in line with the current government guidance.” from the report
Infection control monitoring
The registered manager monitored important infection control arrangements to promote people's safety.
“The registered manager was monitoring key aspects of infection protection control (IPC) to promote people's safety.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01What infection prevention and control arrangements are in place now?
- 02How are visitors currently managed to prevent infections spreading?
- 03How often are people living at the home and staff tested for COVID-19 or other infections?
- 04How does the home make sure staff continue to use protective equipment correctly?
- 05When was the home last fully inspected for care quality and people's experiences?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control during the coronavirus pandemic; the home was inspected but not rated and the report does not assess the other areas of care. This explanation was written from the published report of 20 February 2021 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, October 2019
Hope Lodge Care Home was rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind, personalised care but safety and management systems were not reliable enough.
Inspectors visited on 1 October 2019 with one hour's notice. They spoke with two people, four staff members and two relatives. They reviewed care, medicines, recruitment and management records.
People were treated with kindness and respect. Staff supported people to make choices, stay independent, attend health appointments, prepare food and take part in activities. The ratings for Effective, Caring and Responsive were Good.
There were important weaknesses in safety. Bruising and injuries were not always explained or investigated, one as-needed medicine did not have a proper administration record, and recruitment records were incomplete. The communal bathroom floor also could not be cleaned properly.
The home was rated Requires Improvement overall and for Safe and Well-led. The provider breached Regulation 17 on good governance. CQC requested an action plan and said it would return to check whether improvements had been made.
Kind and respectful care
People and relatives were positive about the care. Staff built caring relationships and respected people's privacy and dignity.
“People and their relatives told us they were happy with the care and support they received and with the staff who supported them.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans included people's preferences, strengths and interests. Staff knew how people wanted their care to be delivered.
“People's care plans were detailed with regards to people's likes dislikes and preferences.” from the report
Choice and independence
People were supported to make choices, prepare food, attend day centres and take part in community activities.
“People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests” from the report
Staff training and support
Staff received induction, refresher training, supervision and team meetings. Staff said they felt supported and able to raise concerns.
“Staff had regular supervisions, meetings with the management team to discuss their work performance, training needs and progress.” from the report
Injuries were not properly monitored
seriousBody maps recorded marks but did not explain how bruising or injuries happened. The manager had not investigated or analysed them, creating a risk that possible abuse would be missed.
“Investigation and analysis of the injuries was not done by the registered manager and this meant that possible abuse could not be monitored or identified.” from the report
Medicines records were incomplete
seriousOne person's as-needed medicine did not have a medicine administration record. This meant staff could not reliably record or monitor whether it had been given safely.
“This meant that staff were not always able to record and monitor when medicines had been administered safely.” from the report
Weak recruitment records
needs fixingSome staff files did not contain a full employment history, and gaps had not been explored or recorded. CQC recommended that recruitment processes be reviewed.
“Staff members did not always have a full work history recorded and gaps in employment had not always been explored and documented.” from the report
Management checks missed problems
seriousAudits did not identify several concerns found by inspectors. An earlier local authority concern about recruitment records had also not been resolved.
“Audit tools being used were not always effective and had not identified areas of concern which we had found during the inspection.” from the report
Bathroom flooring needed repair
needs fixingThe communal bathroom floor had lifted and left gaps, so it could not be cleaned properly and posed an infection risk.
“The flooring had significantly lifted causing gaps between the wall and toilet to the floor, this meant the floor could not be cleaned properly and posed a risk for infection.” from the report
- 01How are bruises and injuries now recorded, investigated and reviewed for possible safeguarding concerns?
- 02How do you ensure every medicine, including as-needed medicines, has a complete administration record?
- 03How are full employment histories and gaps in employment checked and documented for all staff?
- 04What changes have been made to the governance and audit systems since this inspection?
- 05Has the communal bathroom flooring been repaired, and how are infection risks checked now?
This was a planned inspection covering all five CQC questions, including the care provided and the home environment; the previous overall rating was Good in March 2016. This explanation was written from the published report of 19 October 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 Hope Lodge Care Home
Each visit the CQC has published, newest first, back to the day the home was registered.
- February 2021Inspected but not ratedcurrent ratingSafe: Inspected but not rated
- October 2019Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- October 2018
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 11 October 2018.
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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