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CQC report explained · a residential care home

What the CQC found at Prospect House

Goodpublished 15 April 2024, 2 years ago

Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.

The latest report, explained

What inspectors found, August 2022

Prospect House was rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with minor improvements needed to medicines checks and oversight.

Inspectors visited without notice on 5 and 7 July 2022. They spoke with people living in the home, relatives and staff. They observed daily care, checked the building and reviewed care, medicines, recruitment and management records.

All five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found enough staff, well-managed risks and medicines, good infection control, and care that met people's needs and preferences.

People and relatives were positive about the care. Staff knew people well, treated them with kindness and supported their choices, independence, health and activities. The home had a friendly culture and systems for handling concerns.

There were some minor improvements to medicines storage and stock checks. The duty of candour policy needed more detail, and the provider's quality audit could have been more independent. These issues did not change the Good ratings.

What inspectors praised
  • Enough staff

    Inspectors found staffing levels were sufficient and that people's needs were met promptly. A consistent team also meant staff knew people well.

    “There were enough staff deployed to keep people safe and ensure their needs were met in a timely manner.” from the report
  • Kind and respectful care

    People and relatives were happy with the care. Staff treated people with kindness, respect and patience.

    “Staff were kind and caring and treated people with respect.” from the report
  • Personalised support

    Care plans recorded people's needs, preferences, likes and dislikes. Staff used this knowledge to provide individual care.

    “People received person-centred care which met their needs.” from the report
  • Positive leadership

    Inspectors found a friendly and welcoming culture. Staff felt supported and were able to raise concerns.

    “We observed a friendly, welcoming and inclusive culture within the home.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about
  • Medicines checks

    needs fixing

    Inspectors found minor issues with medicines storage and how often stock checks were completed. The registered manager agreed to address these straight away.

    “Some minor improvements were needed to the storage of medicines and the frequency at which stock checks were completed.” from the report
  • Duty of candour policy

    needs fixing

    The policy did not explain clearly enough which incidents it covered or what staff should do if one happened. The registered manager said it would be updated.

    “The provider's policy in respect of the duty of candour was not detailed enough to ensure staff knew what kind of incidents the duty applied to, or what action they would need to take if one of those incidents occurred.” from the report
  • Provider quality audit

    minor

    The provider carried out monthly checks, but inspectors said the audit would be more effective if it were completed more independently.

    “We identified the effectiveness of this audit could be improved if it was completed more independently by the provider.” from the report
Questions to ask them, based on this report
  1. 01What changes have been made to medicines storage and the frequency of stock checks?
  2. 02How do you now make sure the duty of candour policy gives staff clear instructions after something goes wrong?
  3. 03How is the provider's monthly quality audit now completed more independently?
  4. 04How will my relative's care plan record their preferences, communication needs and support for independence?
  5. 05How are activities chosen to match each person's interests and previous hobbies?

This was an unannounced inspection covering all five key questions, including infection prevention and control measures; the previous inspection under the previous provider was rated Good. This explanation was written from the published report of 3 August 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.

An earlier report, explained

What inspectors found, February 2021

Prospect House: Targeted inspection found good infection-control practice, but the service was inspected and not rated.

Inspectors visited the home on 26 January 2021. The visit was announced and focused on infection prevention and control during the coronavirus outbreak.

They found clear visiting arrangements, including a visiting pod, good supplies of protective equipment, extra cleaning and separate handling of contaminated laundry. People could keep in touch with loved ones by phone or video calls.

Inspectors were assured that the home was managing visitors, admissions, testing, protective equipment, cleaning, social distancing and outbreaks safely. This was not a quality rating, so it does not give an overall rating for the home.

What inspectors praised
  • Visiting arrangements

    The home had clear visiting procedures, a bookable visiting pod and cleaning between visits. Contact by phone and video call was also encouraged.

    “A warm and inviting visiting pod was available for pre-bookable timetabled visits.” from the report
  • Infection-control supplies

    Protective equipment stations were organised and well stocked. Staff had extra infection-control training and reminders were displayed.

    “All staff had received additional training about infection prevention and control (IPC).” from the report
  • Safe admissions

    The home had a clear process for admissions, testing, symptom checks and self-isolation. Staff recorded the required checks and observations.

    “This ensured there was a clear process for admission, testing and self-isolation which staff could refer to.” from the report
  • Cleaning and outbreak controls

    Staff worked in defined zones, took separate breaks and carried out extra cleaning of frequently touched areas. Cleaning was recorded and checked.

    “Additional cleaning of touch points had been implemented.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about

Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.

Questions to ask them, based on this report
  1. 01How are the visiting procedures and visiting pod arrangements working now?
  2. 02How do you check that protective equipment remains available and is used safely?
  3. 03What is your current process for admitting someone, including testing and self-isolation?
  4. 04How are cleaning schedules completed and checked?
  5. 05How do you support people's mental health if they need to self-isolate?

This was an announced targeted inspection of infection prevention and control practices only, and the service was inspected but not rated. This explanation was written from the published report of 5 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.

The story over the years

Every inspection of Prospect House

3 rated inspections over 6 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.

  1. August 2022Goodcurrent rating
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good

    Read what inspectors found at Prospect House →

  2. February 2021Inspected but not rated
    Safe: Inspected but not rated

    Read what inspectors found at Prospect House →

  3. March 2019Goodstayed Good
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
  4. September 2016Good
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
  5. June 2020

    Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 2 June 2020.

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.

Next steps

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