Brackley care home drops from 'good' to 'requires improvement' after random inspection

Standards on medicines, records and oversight were breached and there were concerns about staffing levels at Brackley Fields Country House Retirement Home – a residential care for up to 32 people.

During their visit on July 14 CQC inspectors found gaps in the recording of personal care tasks and risk strategies. People's records did not evidence that person-centred care was always delivered. Not all risks were clearly identified and mitigated. Injuries had not always been recorded and follow up information was limited.

Medicine records required improvement. Although people received their medicines, records did not always evidence the reason why an 'as required' medicine had been given and staff did not always have the information required to understand when 'as required' medicines should be given.

Not all records were audited to identify when information had not been recorded. Systems and processes to ensure good oversight and improvements were put in place but were not always effective.

“People, staff and relatives raised some concerns about staffing levels. We were told that due to staffing levels some tasks were not completed, or people had to wait for support to be offered. We made a recommendation regarding reviewing staffing levels,” the inspectors said.

The inspectors found people were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; however, the policies and systems in the service did not always support this practice.

The environment was clean and people had personalised rooms. However, areas of the service required updating.

Staff supported people to have their health needs met. Referrals were made to healthcare professionals as required. Nationally recognised best practice guidance to identify and monitor people who were at risk of developing skin pressure damage or malnutrition was used.

People were supported by kind, caring staff who had been safety recruited and received training to understand people's needs. People and relatives told us staff were kind, caring and compassionate and treated people with dignity and respect.

People, relatives and staff knew how to complain. The registered manager understood their responsibility to (be) open and transparent when things went wrong. Lessons learnt were shared with staff and incidents and accidents were reviewed to identify and trends or patterns to reduce the risk of reoccurrence.

Staff wore appropriate personal protective equipment and the provider followed government guidance on testing for COVID-19.

The last rating for this service in September 2019 was ‘good’. This inspection was prompted by a review of the information held about this service.

The CQC undertook the inspection as part of a random selection of services rated Good and Outstanding.

“We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed. We have identified breaches in relation to medicines, records and oversight,” the inspectors said.

“We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect. We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress.”