About the service:

The New Lodge Nursing Care Ltd., is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The New Lodge Nursing Care Ltd., accommodates up to 33 people in one adapted building. At the time of the inspection there were 29 people in residence who had complex health needs.

People’s experience of using this service:

¿ People’s safety was promoted. We found there were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs who had undergone a robust recruitment process. Staff had a clear understanding as to how people’s safety was to be promoted as they had received and continued to receive training and guidance.

¿Staff followed the information within people’s records to reduce potential risk, promoting people’s health and wellbeing. People’s medicines were managed safely, and prescribed medicines were regularly reviewed by a health care professional.

¿ People lived within a clean and well-maintained environment which met their needs. The service was homely and welcoming and provided opportunities for people to socialise, both within the service and the garden. Equipment to promote people’s independence and meet their personal and health care needs was provided.

¿ People’s needs were regularly reviewed with their involvement or that of a family member and changes were acted upon. People had access to a range of health care professional who visited them at the service. Health care professionals stated people’s clinical and health care needs were met.

¿ People’s dietary and nutritional needs were met, which included the provision of specialist diets which met people’s specific health requirements. Meals and foods were homemade and food and drinks were in plentiful supply and were served throughout the day.

¿ People’s rights and choices were promoted on an ongoing basis. Where people were not able to make informed decisions, then decisions were made in their best interest. Family members were consulted about their relative’s health as part of best interest decisions and were involved in the development of care plans.

¿ People were supported by staff who had access to training reflective of people’s needs. People stated recently recruited staff were not always familiar with their needs, however acknowledge they worked alongside experienced staff.

¿ People spoke positively about the caring approach of staff and they confirmed their privacy, dignity and independence was promoted by staff.

¿ People had opportunities to take part in activities within the service, however the management team had identified this to be an area for improvement to promote a holistic approach to care and to improve people’s quality of life. An action plan was in place for how this was to be achieved, which included working with existing external organisations.

¿ People’s needs were met, which included end of life care. The service had attained an end of life award and staff had access to training specific to meet people’s needs.

¿ People’s views and that of their family members were sought through meetings and the sending out of questionnaires, however not everyone was aware of the meetings held.

¿ Staff, people and family members were familiar with members of the management team, and found them to be supportive and approachable and all were confident to raise concerns.

¿ The registered person met their legal obligations, which included The Duty of Candour and the General Data Protection Regulation. The provider shared information with people and family members as required.

¿ The provider had developed its systems to monitor the quality of the service, which included regular auditing in key areas. Action plans to bring about improvement were in place when audits identified areas for improvement. The action plan was monitored by the registered manager and the man