Marsden Heights Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the service involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect. There had been some recent information of concern in relation to people being treated in an undignified manner and without due care. However, the provider had taken action to address this, people gave examples of how they were treated with kindness; and we observed several positive interactions between staff and people. Visitors were welcome at the home and there was a weekly acitivites timetable, though feedback and observations showed people were not actively engaged in regular activities. People were supported to have control over their lives and staff spoke about how they encouraged people to be more independent. Staff knew people well and took people’s communication needs into account.

This service scored 70 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People were treated with kindness, compassion and dignity in their day-to-day care and support. People and relatives said they were made to feel welcome and generally spoke positively about staff. A person told us, “I am well looked after and treated well. A relative added, “Staff seem to like [person]. The staff are lovely people.”

People’s privacy and dignity was respected. Staff could tell us the different ways they would ensure people’s dignity was maintained and how they promoted respect. There had been some recent information of concern around staff treating people without care and compassion, though the deputy manager advised action had been taken to address this. Additional staff training in person-centred care and dignity had been introduced. The deputy manager also spoke about how they observed and addressed concerns around staff interactions.

There was a culture of kindness and respect between colleagues from other organisations. A partner told us, “The care home staff treat residents like family. They speak to residents with affection and compassion and are courteous and respectful towards me when I visit.”

We observed kind and caring interactions throughout the assessment and saw evidence that staff treated people with compassion. However, we did note a couple of incidents in which people’s dignity was not fully considered or protected. The registered manager took action to address concerns, following this assessment.

We did not look at Treating people as individuals during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

People were supported to have choice and control over their own care and gave examples of day-to-day decisions they made. However, people did not always have sufficient access to activities to help promote their wellbeing. Several people and relatives commented on the lack of activities and told us outdoor furniture was limited, which restricted people’s ability to sit outside. A relative said, “The residents get bored, there is no activity coordinator.”

Staff gave examples of how they promoted people’s independence and choice. A staff member told us, “If the person is independent, I would encourage them and give them uplifting words and encouragement. I would let them know I was there if they needed support.” The registered manager confirmed community-based activities were offered 2 to 3 times a year and spoke of special events held at the home such as an upcoming summer fair.

Whilst activity timetables were on display in the home, we saw little evidence of meaningful activities during our visits. However, there generally seemed to be a friendly atmosphere and people were seen to be engaged in talking with their peers or watching television in the communal lounge.

People had access to their friends and relatives whilst using the service. The service had a visiting policy that was intended to, ‘Make visitors feel welcome in the home .’ Staff were informed of people’s likes, dislikes, preferred activities and level of independence via pre-assessment paperwork and pen pictures; and care plans promoted choice and control.

We received limited feedback around staff anticipating people’s needs to avoid discomfort or distress though 1 person living at the home told us, “I feel settled. Staff support me and understand my needs.”

Staff were alert to people’s needs and took time to observe, communicate and engage people about their immediate care and support needs. Staff gave examples of how they understood people who could not communicate their needs verbally; using gestures, single words or pen and paper and how consistency of the team supported communication. A staff member said, “If people can’t communicate, we will look at their body language or behaviours. We can tell (what’s wrong) when working with people for so long.”

Staff could quickly recognise when people needed urgent help or support. We observed staff responding quickly to people’s call bells and requests for help in a timely manner.

We did not look at Workforce wellbeing and enablement during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.