CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Thurleston Residential Home
Rated Requires improvement: inspectors found the home was not performing as well as it should and told it what to change.
- Safe?
- Requires improvement
- There were shortfalls in medicines, including delays in receiving some medicines and gaps in records showing that topical medicines had been given. Staffing, recruitment, safeguarding and infection control arrangements were otherwise described positively.
- Effective?
- Requires improvement
- Training and induction records were incomplete, and some refresher training was still being arranged. People had support with food, drinks and healthcare, and staff observed people's consent and followed mental capacity requirements.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff treated people with kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, and supported their independence and choices. One relative said some staff could be short with people at times, and this was being addressed.
- Responsive?
- Good
- People and relatives generally said the home met people's needs and responded quickly to concerns. Care plans were being reviewed, but some had inconsistencies and records did not always capture activities and one-to-one social contact.
- Well-led?
- Requires improvement
- The provider and registered manager knew what needed to improve and had an action plan. However, some improvements were not fully implemented, and not all staff had confirmed they had read and understood important information.
What inspectors found, March 2023
Rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind, responsive care, but medicines, staff training and management systems were not yet reliable enough.
This was the first inspection since the home became registered with its new provider. It was unannounced and took place on 06 February 2023 and 07 February 2023. One inspector spoke with people, relatives and staff, observed care, and checked care, medicines, recruitment and management records.
The home was rated Good for Caring and Responsive. People were treated kindly, their privacy and choices were respected, and staff generally responded to their needs. People had access to healthcare, suitable food and drinks, activities and visits from family and friends.
The overall rating was Requires Improvement. Medicines records had gaps, some medicines were not always received on time, and not all staff had completed the training needed for their roles. Care plans, risk assessments, incident learning and management records were being improved, but these changes were not fully in place or embedded when inspectors visited.
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors saw staff treating people with kindness and compassion. People’s privacy, dignity, independence and choices were respected.
“During our inspection visits we saw staff treated people with kindness and compassion.” from the report
Staff available
People said there were enough staff and that requests for help were answered promptly. Inspectors also saw this during their visits.
“People told us they felt there were enough staff and their responses to requests for assistance were prompt.” from the report
Health and food support
People had access to health professionals, and the home monitored weight, food and drinks where needed. People said they had choices of meals and drinks.
“People told us they had a choice of meals and drinks, which was confirmed during our inspection visits.” from the report
Family contact
People were supported to receive visits from family and friends. Relatives said they could visit, although there were sometimes delays getting the door opened.
“People told us their family and friends visited, this was confirmed by relatives.” from the report
Medicines records and supply
seriousThere were gaps in records showing that creams and other topical medicines had been given. The home also sometimes had to chase prescriptions and deliveries.
“There were shortfalls with medicines. However, risks to people were being reduced due to this being identified by the registered manager and audits undertaken.” from the report
Staff training and induction
needs fixingNot all staff had completed all the training needed to meet people’s needs. There were also no records of probation meetings or feedback from staff shadowing during induction.
“The registered manager had identified shortfalls in training provided to staff.” from the report
Care plans and risk records
needs fixingCare plans and risk assessments were being reviewed, but some care plans contained inconsistencies. Inspectors said improvements were still in progress.
“There were some inconsistencies in the care plans we reviewed.” from the report
Management oversight
needs fixingThe home had an improvement plan, but not all changes were fully implemented. Some staff had not signed to confirm they had read and understood important meeting information.
“However not all of the improvements had been fully implemented.” from the report
Recording activities
minorGroup activities were recorded, but not their length. One-to-one activities and some social contact were not consistently recorded in daily notes.
“Although records were maintained of group activities, these did not include the length of time activities were, in addition there was limited recording relating to one to one activity.” from the report
- 01Have the problems with medicine deliveries and the recording of creams and other topical medicines been fully resolved?
- 02Which staff training and refresher training was outstanding at the inspection, and has it now been completed and checked?
- 03Have all residents’ care plans and risk assessments been reviewed and made consistent?
- 04How are accidents and incidents now recorded, including the action taken and lessons learned?
- 05How are activities and one-to-one time being provided and recorded, including at weekends?
This was an unannounced first inspection covering all five CQC questions, including infection prevention and control; the home had recently changed provider. This explanation was written from the published report of 10 March 2023 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 Thurleston Residential Home
6 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has held its Requires improvement rating throughout.
- March 2023Requires improvementcurrent ratingdown from GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- July 2021Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- March 2020Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- September 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2016Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: Requires improvementResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- March 2015Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Good
- November 2022
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 23 November 2022.
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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23 live-in carers within about an hour of Suffolk
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Most charge £1,020 to £1,260 a week. 17 can care for a couple. 7 years' experience on average.
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