A Warrington care home has been working to improve after inspectors from the Care Quality Commission raised safety concerns following a recent inspection.
Holcroft Grange Residential Care Home on Jackson Avenue, Culcheth, Warrington, was rated overall “Requires improvement” following the inspection which took place between October 27 and November 5 last year.
Holcroft Grange is a care home without nursing and provides accommodation and personal care for up to 40 people. At the time of the assessment, 36 people were living at the home.
The assessment included 33 quality statements from the key questions of safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.
During this assessment, the provider was in breach of regulations in relation to people’s safety and treatment and good governance.
At their last assessment, this key question was rated good. At this assessment, the rating has changed to requires improvement.
This meant some aspects of the service were not always safe, and there was limited assurance about safety. There was an increased risk that people could be harmed.
This service scored 50 (out of 100) for this area.
It was found that people were not always provided with safe care and treatment. Risks to people were not consistently identified and monitored. People’s care plans did not always contain accurate and consistent information.
Processes to analyse safety events were not always reliable and robust, meaning that correct action taken to prevent further occurrences could be missed. Care monitoring records were poorly completed, so inspectors could not be assured that people had received the care they needed at the right time to mitigate risk.
Medicines were not always managed safely. For people who were prescribed as and when medicines, protocols to manage these medicines were insufficient.
The provider’s governance systems and processes did not always operate effectively. For example, care plan audits did not take place.
However, inspectors received positive feedback about the manager who was described as being ‘hands-on’ and ‘approachable.’
There was a wide range of meaningful activities for people which had a positive impact on their well-being. People’s relatives were able to visit without restriction. The home had a warm and homely atmosphere and people appeared at ease in their surroundings.
Both the manager and registered provider were receptive to feedback and began taking action to remedy the shortfalls identified at this assessment.
People’s experience of this service
People and their relatives spoke positively about the care and support they received. People told inspectors they were supported by a consistent and caring staff team. Comments from people included, “Staff are marvellous”, “Couldn’t wish for better staff” and “I love my room – I’ve got everything I want.” Relatives told us, “Staff are fantastic” and “I am so happy [Name] is being well looked after.”
Although some people’s care plans were not wholly reflective of their needs, people said they felt staff knew them well, met their needs and were kept safe. A relative confirmed, “I don’t worry when I leave after a visit.”
People and their relatives told inspectors in addition to using formal ways of providing feedback, they knew who the manager was and would not hesitate to raise any concerns.
A spokesperson for Holcroft Grange said: “We are disappointed that the CQC found a number of gaps in our processes, but the report also acknowledges that we were receptive to the observations and have made significant improvements since the inspection took place.
“A new care planning system was being introduced at the time of the inspection. This is now fully operational and has already made a positive impact to address the shortfalls identified.
“The most important thing for any care home is the quality of care it provides, and we are pleased that this was rated as ‘good’ by the CQC.
“Our staff team is caring and extremely dedicated, and the report praised the fact that the home has a warm and homely atmosphere where people are at ease in their surroundings. We also provide a wide range of meaningful activities for our residents, which has a positive impact on their well-being, and relatives are able to visit without restriction.
“We look forward to welcoming the CQC back and we are confident they would rate us as ‘good’ in all areas.”
A full copy of the report can be read HERE
