Applegarth Nursing Home

People said staff were kind and made them feel safe. Inspectors saw staff supporting people in an unrushed and engaging way.

“People said they felt safe and comfortable at the home. They commented staff were "nice" and treated them with kindness.” from the report

Inspectors found there were enough staff on duty. Staff checked people in bedrooms regularly when some people could not use call alarms.

“The provider ensured there were sufficient staff on duty.” from the report

People were offered choices and received support suited to their dietary needs. Mealtimes were described as gentle and unrushed when people needed physical help.

“People were offered a choice of dishes at each mealtime and dined when they were ready.” from the report

Staff helped people access health services and worked with occupational therapy and community health services.

“Staff collaborated with health professionals such as occupational therapy and community health services on behalf of people.” from the report

Risk assessments did not set out clear actions to reduce risks, and some were not reviewed regularly. One manual handling assessment was incomplete and conflicted with specialist advice.

“The failure to identify, monitor and manage risk placed people at potential risk of harm.” from the report

The provider could not show that staff had the specialist training needed for the people living there. Nursing staff skills and competence were not properly recorded or reviewed.

“The provider lacked a comprehensive system of recording the skills and competence of nurses.” from the report

Important audits were stored on a computer that only the absent registered manager could access. This meant senior managers could not reliably check safety and care quality.

“The failure to ensure a demonstrable and effective system was in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service was a breach of Regulation 17” from the report

A small number of people had been restricted without the required legal framework or staff training. The report says one previous restriction on access to the community was no longer happening.

“The management team had not always acted within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act so a small number of people had been restricted without a legal framework or training by staff to do so.” from the report

Fridge temperatures were not recorded consistently or correctly. There were also no body maps or written instructions for applying some prescribed creams and ointments.

“The record of daily temperatures for the medicines fridge were not being recorded consistently or correctly.” from the report

The safeguarding log had not been updated since August 2023, despite later incidents, and referrals had not always been made to the local authority.

“Safeguarding referrals had not always been made to the local authority.” from the report