CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Mountbatten Lodge
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found that risks such as falls, choking and malnutrition were assessed and managed. There were enough suitable staff, and medicines were stored, administered and disposed of safely.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff had induction, ongoing training and regular supervision. People had choices about food and drink, access to healthcare, and care that followed professional advice.
- Caring?
- Good
- People were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. Staff supported independence and involved people, relatives and representatives in care decisions.
- Responsive?
- Outstanding
- Care was exceptionally personalised. Staff adapted communication and activities to people's histories, interests and abilities, and acted on complaints and suggestions.
- Well-led?
- Good
- Inspectors found effective quality checks and an open staff culture. People and relatives had opportunities to influence how the home was run.
What inspectors found, June 2019
Rated Good overall, with Outstanding responsiveness and inspectors finding safe, kind and highly personalised care.
This was an unannounced inspection on 16 May 2019. Inspectors spoke with people living in the home, relatives and staff. They reviewed care records, medicines records, staff files, rotas, training records, audits and meeting notes. They also observed care.
The home was rated Good for Safe, Effective, Caring and Well-led. Inspectors found that risks were managed, staffing levels were sufficient, medicines were handled safely, and staff had the right training and support.
Responsive care was rated Outstanding. Staff knew people very well and supported their interests, communication, independence and personal choices. The home also supported people and their families with end of life care.
The overall Good rating was the same as at the previous inspection, published in December 2016. The report says the legal requirements were met.
Personalised activities
Staff built activities around people's past interests and preferences. This included music, gardening, technology, animals and opportunities to go out.
“Staff knew people well and arranged activities for them based on their preferences and histories.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors saw staff treating people with compassion and supporting privacy, dignity and independence. People were involved in choosing how and where care was provided.
“People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff treated people with respect and they responded to call bells promptly.” from the report
Safe staffing and medicines
The report found enough suitable staff and prompt responses to requests for help. Medicines systems were organised, and staff handling medicines were trained and assessed.
“There were enough suitable staff to keep people safe.” from the report
End of life support
The home worked with healthcare professionals and families to follow people's wishes and provide comfortable, dignified end of life care.
“The service worked extremely closely with healthcare professionals to ensure that people were supported to have a dignified and comfortable death.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How would you tailor activities and daily routines to my relative's interests, history and abilities?
- 02How do you involve relatives or representatives in care planning, especially when they cannot visit regularly?
- 03What alternative arrangements are used when important equipment, such as the passenger lift, is unavailable?
- 04How are medicines checked, including medicines given in a person's best interests?
- 05How would you support my relative's end of life wishes and involve the family and healthcare professionals?
This was an unannounced planned inspection that looked at all five CQC questions and the overall quality and safety of the care home. This explanation was written from the published report of 14 June 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.
What inspectors found, December 2016
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and person-centred care, but activities and staffing levels were not always consistent.
Inspectors made an unannounced visit on 12 and 14 October 2016. They spoke with people, relatives and staff, reviewed care and medicines records, checked staff files and training records, and observed care in communal areas.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found suitable risk assessments, safe medicines management, enough staff overall, trained staff, respectful care, individual care plans and systems for handling complaints and improving quality.
There were some areas to keep under review. People and relatives gave mixed views about staffing, food and activities. There was no registered manager during the inspection, although an interim manager was providing stable leadership and a new manager was due to start in November 2016.
Safe medicines
Medicines were stored, administered and recorded safely. The records checked had no unexplained gaps.
“The medicine administration records (MAR) we looked at had been completed fully, with no unexplained gaps.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors observed friendly interactions and found that people’s privacy, dignity and choices were respected.
“We observed friendly and respectful interactions between staff and people who used the service.” from the report
Individual care planning
Care plans described people’s needs, preferences, abilities and the support staff should provide. Plans were reviewed regularly or when needs changed.
“The care plans we looked at were person centred and had detailed information about how staff would support people with their needs” from the report
Improvements since the last inspection
The home had acted on problems found in 2014, including the storage of clinical waste and staffing during busy periods.
“During this inspection, we found improvements had been made and the manager was able to show us what action had been taken to make the required improvements.” from the report
Staffing could be stretched
needs fixingAlthough rotas showed enough staff overall, some people, relatives and staff said the service could be short-staffed at times or that staff were busy.
“There were mixed views about whether there was enough staff to support people safely and quickly.” from the report
Limited activities
needs fixingSome people and relatives felt there were not enough activities, that some activities had stopped, or that people were not always encouraged to join in.
“They could do with more activities, but it is difficult because they come in and offer [relative] to do activities and if they say 'no', they don't push it at all.” from the report
Some supervision was overdue
needs fixingThe manager acknowledged that some staff supervision meetings had not happened on time. A plan was in place to complete them.
“Although the manager acknowledged that some of the staff supervisions were overdue, we saw that they had put a plan in place to get these completed as soon as possible.” from the report
Mixed views about food
minorPeople generally had enough to eat and drink, but some people described the food as only adequate or said it was dry.
“Another person said, "The food is alright. Not very good, but adequate.” from the report
- 01How many care staff are now expected on each shift, and what happens when someone is off sick at short notice?
- 02What activities are currently available, including one-to-one activities for people who do not join group sessions?
- 03Has the new manager who was due to start in November 2016 started, and who is the registered manager now?
- 04How are staff supervisions tracked to make sure none become overdue?
- 05How do residents give feedback about meals, and what changes have been made in response to comments about dry or inadequate food?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five key questions, based on observations, discussions, records, staff files, training records, medicines and complaints checks. This explanation was written from the published report of 24 December 2016 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 Mountbatten Lodge
3 rated inspections over 4 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- June 2019Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: OutstandingWell-led: Good
- December 2016Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- December 2014GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- June 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 6 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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