The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Addison Court, in Ryton, Tyne and Wear as good and removed it from special measures following an inspection in March and April.
Addison Court, run by Malhotra Care Homes Limited, is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to up to 62 older people, some of whom are living with dementia.
The inspection was undertaken to follow up on concerns found at the previous inspection which identified breaches of regulation regarding involving people and relatives in care, safeguarding, managing complaints, duty of candour processes, staff recruitment, accidents and incidents learning, care records, management and oversight, and medicines management. Improvements have been made, and the service is no longer in breach of regulation.
Following this inspection, the overall rating for the home, as well as the areas of safe and well-led, have moved up from inadequate to good. The areas of caring, effective and responsive have moved up from requires improvement to good.
Victoria Marsden, CQC deputy director of operations in the north, said:
“When we visited Addison Court, we were pleased to see that leaders had taken on board our feedback from the previous inspection to make improvements and provide a much better service to people. Leaders had a better oversight of the service which meant staff were able to provide much safer and more person-centred care.
“Leaders had created a positive culture, and this was clear when people spoke to us about their experiences. Staff now considered people’s needs, got to know them well and ensured there were plenty of activities on offer to maintain their wellbeing.
“People told us they felt safe and that their health had improved since being at the home. For example, one person had pressure sores before living at the service, but staff put preventative measures in place and now the person no longer had pressure sores.
“Another person who was previously at risk of falls had undertaken new hobbies due to improved mobility following intensive support from staff.
“Staff responded to people quickly if they needed support or assistance from staff. During the inspection, people told us staff always went above and beyond to ensure they were happy.
“Leaders and staff at Addison Court should be proud of the wide range of improvements we found since our previous inspection. We’ll continue to monitor the service to ensure the improvements are sustained so people can continue to receive the level of care they deserve.”
Inspectors found:
- Risks to people were assessed and plans were in place to keep them safe.
- Staff made sure people understood their care and treatment to enable them to give informed consent.
- People knew how to give feedback and were confident leaders took it seriously and acted on it.
- Leaders and staff worked in partnership with the local community to deliver effective support to people.
- Staff worked closely with external agencies so that people had a smooth transition when moving between services.
- Staff protected people’s privacy and dignity and supported them to maintain and increase their independence.
- Staff spoke positively about the culture and values of the service, and said they were supported in their roles.