CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at The Willows
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found enough staff, safe recruitment, managed risks, safe medicines systems and infection control measures. Medicines records checked for eight people had been completed accurately.
- Effective?
- Good
- People were supported with food, health appointments, consent and best-interest decisions. Staff had training and supervision, and the environment promoted independence.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff were observed to be kind, patient and respectful. People were supported with privacy, independence, communication and relationships with family and friends.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans reflected people's preferences and were reviewed when needs changed. People were supported with hobbies, community access, complaints and end-of-life wishes.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The home had audits, meetings and feedback systems to monitor care and make improvements. Inspectors found the manager approachable and the service working with other agencies.
What inspectors found, August 2018
The Willows was rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with previous medicines and management problems improved.
This was an unannounced inspection on 09 July 2018. The inspector spoke with people using the home, relatives, staff and managers. They observed care, checked care records, medicines, staff training and how the home was monitored.
All five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found enough suitably recruited staff, safe medicines management, support with health and nutrition, kind care, activities based on people's interests and systems for managing the home.
The previous inspection in December 2016 rated the service Requires Improvement. It found problems with medicines, record accuracy and management systems. At this inspection, inspectors said the required improvements had been made.
Previous problems improved
Inspectors found that the issues from the previous inspection had been addressed, including medicines management, record accuracy and systems for running the home.
“At this inspection we found that the provider had made the required improvements.” from the report
Safety and independence
People's risks were managed while staff encouraged them to do things for themselves. Inspectors also found enough suitably recruited staff.
“People were supported with their risks whilst their independence was promoted.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Staff were seen to be patient and compassionate. People's privacy, dignity, choices and individual ways of communicating were respected.
“People were treated with dignity and staff were caring and kind.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans recorded people's likes, dislikes and needs. People were supported with activities, community access and changing care needs.
“People's care was reviewed and updated to ensure they received care that met their changing needs.” from the report
One medicines protocol was missing
minorA medicines audit found that one person did not have guidance for an as-required medicine. The report says this was then fed back to staff and a protocol was put in place.
“We saw the medicine audit had identified that one person did not have a protocol in place for an 'as required' medicine.” from the report
- 01How do you now check that all as-required medicines have clear protocols?
- 02How are care records checked for accuracy and updated when a person's needs change?
- 03How would you support my relative's particular way of communicating choices or pain?
- 04What activities and community access would be available for my relative?
- 05How are relatives involved in care reviews and decisions about health or end-of-life wishes?
This was an unannounced inspection covering all five CQC questions and the overall quality of the home; the previous overall rating was Requires Improvement in December 2016. This explanation was written from the published report of 7 August 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, January 2017
The Willows is rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind and responsive care, but medicines, risk planning and quality checks were not consistently safe or effective.
Inspectors made an unannounced visit on 8 December 2016. They spoke with five people, four care staff and managers. They observed care and checked care records, staff files, rotas, training and quality records.
The home had improved since the previous inspection in March 2016. Staffing levels were safe, staff understood safeguarding, and people received kind care. People were supported with food, health appointments, activities, communication, privacy and independence.
Further work was still needed. Medicine records did not always match the stock held, and one person's behaviour risks did not have a care plan. The systems used to check and improve quality had not found all these problems. The home was no longer in breach of the legal requirements mentioned from the previous inspection, but its overall rating remained Requires Improvement.
Safe staffing
Inspectors found enough staff on shift to meet people's care needs. This was an improvement from the previous inspection.
“Staff rotas showed that safe staffing levels were sustained and there were always enough staff on shift to meet people's care needs.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People had positive interactions with staff. Staff promoted people's dignity, privacy, independence and choices.
“People were treated with kindness and respect and their right to independence and privacy was promoted.” from the report
Health and decision support
People's health was monitored and they were supported to see health professionals. Staff followed the legal requirements when people could not make certain decisions themselves.
“People's health needs were monitored and they were supported to obtain medical support as required.” from the report
Medicine records
seriousMedicine stock did not always match the records. This meant inspectors could not be sure that medicines had been given as prescribed.
“we could not be assured that people had received their medicines as prescribed as the numbers of medicines in stock did not always match people's medicines records.” from the report
Quality checks
needs fixingManagement checks had not identified all the problems with medicines and behaviour risk planning. Inspectors said the quality systems were not yet effective.
“further improvements were required to ensure concerns with care delivery were consistently identified and acted upon.” from the report
- 01What checks are now used to make sure medicine stock matches the medicine records every time?
- 02What care plan is now in place for behaviour that could put the person or others at risk?
- 03How do you check that all staff understand and follow the same risk plans?
- 04What changes have been made to the quality monitoring system since this inspection?
- 05How do you make sure improvements from the previous inspection are being maintained?
This was an unannounced inspection covering all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This explanation was written from the published report of 13 January 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 The Willows
3 rated inspections over 2 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.
- August 2018Goodcurrent ratingup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- January 2017Requires improvementstayed Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- July 2016Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- August 2015
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 28 August 2015.
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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At least 100 live-in carers within about an hour of Stoke-on-Trent
These are self-employed carers on PrimeCarers, the introductory agency that runs this directory. Each has a profile with their own rates and reviews from families, and you choose who to talk to.
Most charge £980 to £1,190 a week. 93 can care for a couple. 9 years' experience on average.
“She's shown compassion, patience and a level of understanding that no other carer has given.”
“She maintained a great environment for mum both with the tidiness and cleanliness of the house and Mum and with her caring and understanding attitude.”
Every carer has had an enhanced DBS check in the last 18 months, ID and right-to-work checks and an online interview. Their skills and training are for you to check with them. Carers set their own rates, and who is free changes week to week.