Brook Care Home

Brook Care Home is a residential care home providing personal care without nursing for up to 20 people some of whom maybe living with dementia. At the time of inspection 18 people were using the service. The service is set over two floors in a residential area.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People and relatives spoke positively about the service. One relative said, “We are kept well informed, I think they are excellent.” One person said, “All the staff are very amiable, you never feel any pressure.”

Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. There were systems in place to minimise the risk of infection and to learn lessons from accidents and incidents. People were cared for safely by staff who had been recruited and employed after appropriate checks had been completed. People’s needs were met by sufficient numbers of staff. Medication was dispensed by staff who had received training to do so.

People were cared for and supported by staff who had received the appropriate training. The registered manager had a good understanding of their responsibilities in relation to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

People were supported to eat and drink enough to ensure they maintained a balanced diet and referrals to other health professionals were made when required. The environment was well maintained and suitable for the needs of people.

Staff cared for people in an empathetic and kind manner. Staff had a good understanding of people’s preferences of care. Staff always worked hard to promote people’s independence through encouraging and supporting people to make informed choices.

People and their relatives were involved in the planning and review of their care. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis. People were supported to follow their interests and participate in social activities. The registered manager responded to complaints received in a timely manner. People were supported at the end of their life.

The registered manager had systems in place to monitor and provide good care and these were reviewed on a regular basis.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

Brook Care Home provides accommodation and personal care for up to 20 people some of whom may be living with dementia. At the time of our inspection 14 people were living at the service.

At our last inspection the service was rated as Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

The service was safe. Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. People were cared for safely by staff who had been recruited and employed after appropriate checks had been completed. People’s needs were met by sufficient numbers of staff. Medication was dispensed by staff who had received training to do so.

The service was effective. People were cared for and supported by staff who had received training to support people to meet their needs. The registered manager had a good understanding of their responsibilities in relation to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. People were supported to eat and drink enough as to ensure they maintained a balanced diet and referrals to other health professionals were made when required.

The service was caring. Staff cared for people in a empathetic and kind manner. Staff had a good understanding of people’s preferences of care. Staff always worked hard to promote people’s independence through encouraging and supporting people to make informed decisions.

The service was responsive. People and their relatives were involved in the planning and review of their care. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis and also when there was a change in care needs. People were supported to follow their interests and participate in social activities. The registered manager responded to complaints received in a timely manner.

The service was well-led. Staff, people and their relatives spoke very highly of the manager. The service had systems in place to monitor and provide good care and these were reviewed on a regular basis.

If you wish to see the evidence supporting our summary please read the full report.

Is the service safe?

People were protected by effective staff recruitment systems. Records showed that staff had received Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) training. This meant that staff were provided with the information that they needed to ensure they knew what action to take if they became aware of any concerns about people's safety.

Is the service effective?

The five people we spoke with were satisfied with the care and support they received. No one raised any concerns with us. This was consistent with the positive feedback received from people as reported in the provider's own quality assurance survey. All of the staff we spoke with were knowledgeable about individual people's care needs, and this knowledge was consistent with the care plans in place.

Is the service caring?

People were supported by kind and attentive staff. We saw that care workers showed patience and gave encouragement when supporting people. We spoke with three people who used the service. People commented, 'The staff help me, they don't do everything for me and help me to do things for myself'. One person said to us, "I am very happy here. Everyone is very kind". We observed the care and attention people received from staff. All interactions we saw were appropriate, respectful and friendly and there was a relaxed atmosphere throughout the home.

Is the service responsive?

We saw that the five care plans and risk assessments were informative, up to date and regularly reviewed. The registered manager responded in an open, thorough and timely manner to complaints. This meant that people could be assured that complaints were investigated and action was taken as necessary. Staff told us the registered manager was approachable and they would have no difficulty speaking to them if they had any concerns about the home.

Is the service well led?

Staff said that they felt well supported by the manager, the team worked well together, and they were able do their jobs safely. The provider had a range of quality monitoring systems in place to ensure that care was being delivered appropriately by staff.

When we looked at the care provided we found that it met the needs of the people using the service. Relatives we spoke with were very happy with the care provided and one person said, "The care here is above excellent and I cannot speak highly enough about the staff."

We also looked at the systems in place to manage infection control. We found that the kitchen had recently been inspected by Rochford Council and had been awarded the highest rating possible for hygiene. People using the service and staff were also protected from health care infections through the use of regular health checks and inoculations from the local doctors surgery.

We looked at a number of staff files and found that the recruiting process was robust. They included an application form, references, criminal record checks and a job description to ensure that qualified staff were employed. This kept people safe end meant that people received care from qualified and experienced staff.

The provider had in place an effective system for monitoring the quality of service they provided. This included a programme of audits, service user feedback and a complaints system, all used to identify areas for improvement.