CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Medway House
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- People said they felt safe. Inspectors found that medicines, safeguarding, risk assessments, staffing, recruitment, infection control and safety checks were managed appropriately.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff had relevant training, induction, supervision and appraisals. People had choices about food, were supported with health appointments and were cared for in line with the Mental Capacity Act.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff treated people with dignity and respect. The home supported people's cultural, religious, personal and family relationships, and involved people in decisions about their care.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Support plans were personalised, accessible and updated when people's needs changed. People were supported with activities, complaints, community access and moves to supported living.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The home had a registered manager who was described as approachable and involved. Quality checks were carried out, and the report says actions from those checks were addressed promptly.
What inspectors found, June 2018
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, respectful and personalised care, with no serious risks or concerns identified.
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection on 23 and 30 April 2018. One inspector spoke with people living in the home, staff, the manager, the provider and a local authority representative. They also observed care and checked care records, staff files, medicines records and management records.
People said they felt safe and supported. Inspectors found that medicines were managed properly, staff understood safeguarding, staffing levels met people's needs and the home was clean. Staff supported people in a caring and respectful way.
Support plans were personalised and kept up to date. People were supported with food, health appointments, activities, family relationships and plans to move to supported living. The home also had systems to monitor quality and respond to complaints.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This was the same overall rating as the previous inspection on 14 February 2017.
Medicines managed safely
Inspectors found that medicines were stored, given and recorded properly. Staff had received medicines training.
“Records of medicines maintained by the home were of a good standard, and included details of ordering, storage, administration and disposal of medicines.” from the report
Kind and respectful support
Staff communicated positively and supported people's dignity, choices, cultural needs and relationships.
“We saw that staff members communicated with people in a positive, professional and friendly manner.” from the report
Personalised support
Plans included people's histories, preferences, health needs and goals. They were reviewed when needs changed.
“People's support plans were up to date and person centred, and contained guidance for staff in relation to meeting people's identified needs.” from the report
Support to build independence
People were encouraged to develop daily living skills and take part in activities. The home supported people who were moving to supported living.
“There was a strategy to support people to develop confidence and independence skills to enable them to move on to supported living or other suitable living arrangements when they were ready to do so.” from the report
Minor maintenance issue
minorInspectors saw blistered paintwork on a communal bathroom window sill during the first visit. It had been reported and a new window sill was installed by the second visit.
“When we returned to the home on 30 April 2018 we found that a new window sill had been installed.” from the report
- 01How would you assess and review my relative's mental health needs and any changes in their capacity?
- 02How would you support my relative to take medicines safely and attend any required blood tests?
- 03How would you match staff support to my relative's cultural, religious, language and communication needs?
- 04What activities and daily living skills would my relative be supported to develop?
- 05How would you plan and review a move to supported living if my relative wanted this?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five areas, and the ratings in each area remained Good. This explanation was written from the published report of 7 June 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.
What inspectors found, April 2017
Medway House was rated Good overall; this focused inspection found the previous reporting failure had been fixed and management checks were in place.
This was an unannounced focused inspection on 14 February 2017. It checked whether the home had fixed a previous legal breach about reporting incidents to the CQC. The inspector reviewed records and spoke with a manager, a support worker and one person living at the home.
The provider had submitted the required notifications, and these matched the home's incident records. The inspector also found regular checks of care records, risk assessments, medicines, money, health and safety, and infection control.
The home was rated Good overall. The well-led rating improved from Requires Improvement at the previous inspection to Good. The other four ratings were carried over as Good from the January 2016 comprehensive inspection.
Required reporting was corrected
The home had submitted the required notifications to the CQC, and these matched its incident records. Appropriate action had also followed a recent notification.
“Regulatory notifications had been submitted to CQC and we saw that these corresponded with the records maintained at the home.” from the report
Regular management checks
Audits took place every two months and covered a wide range of areas. Medicines and people's money were checked weekly by managers, with daily checks during staff handovers.
“We saw that audits of records and procedures took place every two months.” from the report
Actions were followed up
The home recorded actions needed after audits and checked whether they had been completed. For example, a new washing machine had been obtained after an earlier audit.
“Where actions were required these were identified and recorded in the subsequent audit where they had taken place.” from the report
People's views were sought
The annual satisfaction survey had positive responses. Ideas for improving support were discussed at residents' meetings.
“A satisfaction survey of people living at the home showed that people had few concerns about their support.” from the report
Earlier failure to report incidents
seriousAt the previous inspection, the provider had not notified the CQC about incidents reported to the police. The report says this legal requirement had been met by the focused inspection.
“The provider had failed to notify CQC about incidents that had been reported to the police in relation to a person who had failed to return home.” from the report
Training still planned
needs fixingThe latest audit identified a need for epilepsy awareness training. The deputy manager said this was planned, so families may want to check whether it has since been completed.
“The most recent audit had identified a need for epilepsy awareness training and the deputy manager told us that this was planned.” from the report
- 01Has the epilepsy awareness training identified in the January 2017 audit now been completed?
- 02How are incidents reported to the CQC, and how does the home check that notifications match its incident records?
- 03Can we see how often care plans, risk assessments and medicines records are audited?
- 04How are actions from audits tracked until they are completed?
- 05How are people's views and suggestions from residents' meetings used to change their support?
This was a focused inspection of the well-led area; the other four ratings were carried over as Good from the January 2016 comprehensive inspection. This explanation was written from the published report of 20 April 2017 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 Medway House
4 rated inspections over 3 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.
- June 2018Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2017Goodstayed GoodWell-led: Good
- March 2016Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- April 2015Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Good
- January 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- April 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 27 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.
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