What the CQC found at St James's Lodge

People and relatives consistently described staff as kind, friendly and respectful. Inspectors observed warm greetings and spontaneous kindness.

“Everyone we spoke with told us St James's was a lovely place to live and visit, that staff were kind and caring and people were treated with respect.” from the report

People were supported to choose where they spent time, who they spent it with and which activities they wanted. Staff also helped people maintain family and community links.

“People were involved in their day to day lives through being empowered to make their own choices about where they spent their time, who with and how.” from the report

The home worked with GPs and other health professionals to manage people's health needs. Inspectors found that changes in weight and swallowing were identified quickly.

“People's health was well managed and staff had positive links with professionals which promoted wellbeing for them.” from the report

Medicines were administered as prescribed, recorded and audited. People said they received their medicines regularly and on time.

“Medicines were given as administered as prescribed and recorded in line with current guidance.” from the report

People, relatives and staff said managers were approachable and listened to concerns and ideas. The home used feedback and audits to improve its work.

“All feedback was used to make continuous improvements to the service.” from the report

Inspectors found a gap in checking the full employment history of prospective staff. The provider said it had changed its filing and auditing system.

“However, we observed there was a gap in exploring all prospective staff's employment history.” from the report

Staff training was being updated, but the records were incomplete. Inspectors gave the provider more time to complete them.

“Training was updated at the provider's required intervals however the records had gaps in them.” from the report

Some significant events were not fully recorded, and observations did not always show the normal range or what action was taken. The home introduced a new recording form.

“We identified that not all significant events for people were fully recorded.” from the report

Care records focused mainly on clinical needs and did not fully record people's end-of-life wishes and feelings. Some Treatment and Escalation Plans were not completed in line with current guidance.

“People's care records focused on the clinical aspects of people's care but did not reflect the person's wishes and feelings at their end of life.” from the report

The home did not have an identified strategy for meeting the Accessible Information Standards. Inspectors also recommended reviewing the Statement of Purpose and training on equality, diversity and human rights.

“The staff instinctively met people's communication needs but there was no identified strategy in ensuring they were meeting the Accessible information standards” from the report

People generally felt there were enough staff, but some said they sometimes waited longer when staff were busy, depending on the time of day.

“People commented that when staff were really busy was the only time they had to wait longer.” from the report