Enter and view: The Broughtons Care Home

Healthwatch Salford carried out an Enter and View visit to the Broughtons Care Home, a residential care home with places for up to 39 residents.

The home was evaluated against eight quality indicators: strong, visible management; staff with the time and skills to do their jobs; good knowledge of each individual resident and how their needs may be changing; a varied programme of activities; quality, choice and flexibility around food and mealtimes; ensuring residents can regularly see health professionals such as GPs, dentists, opticians or chiropodists; accommodating residents’ personal, cultural and lifestyle needs; and being an open environment where feedback is actively sought and used. 

findings

Authorised representatives conducted interviews with 2 members of staff at the care home. Topics

such as quality of care, safety, dignity, respecting and acknowledging the resident’s and families’

wishes and staff training were explored. Authorised representatives also approached 3 residents at

the care home to ask them about their experiences of the home and, where appropriate, other topics such as accessing health care services. 2 family members were also spoken to as they were with residents at the time. The manager unfortunately was not able to be present due to sickness but did complete the manager’s survey by email following the visit.

A proportion of the visit was also observational, involving the authorised representatives walking

around the public/communal areas and observing the surroundings to gain an understanding of how

the home works and how the residents engaged with staff members and the facilities. There was an

observation checklist prepared for this purpose.

Feedback from residents and staff was overall quite positive about life in The Broughtons. Part of the visit was observational, and Healthwatch were able to pick out areas for improvement regarding dignity, respect and the environment including the conservatory. It was also felt that details of the senior management team needed to be more visible.

Recommendations

• Staff training – staff to be reminded/undergo dignity and care training to ensure that all residents are treated with respect and staff knock before entering bedrooms and bathrooms.
• Hygiene – update the hygiene procedures to ensure that the home looks and smells neutral at all times where possible.
• Conservatory – the home to bring this space back into use and reduce the amount of equipment that is currently stored in there which could prevent its full use and enjoyment by the residents
• Promote residents’ and relatives’ meetings widely to ensure all residents and their relatives can have a say in how the home is run.
• Staff details (including pictures) of who’s who in the home displayed in prominent positions so that all residents and visitors are able to identify who the staff team including the manager are.
• Provide a properly identified smoking area well away from any entrances, for staff and residents who wish to smoke

The care provider responded positively to the report with detailed responses to the recommendations.  Healthwatch Salford carried out a follow up visit to the care home on 20 June 2018 and noted that most of the recommendations had been implemented.