Enter and view: The Sands Care Home

Healthwatch Lancashire undertook an enter and view visit to The Sands Care Centre on 4 June 2024.  They spoke to 18 people.

The Sands Care Home is located in close proximity to local amenities enabling residents to have easy access to the local community. As the home is situated on the seafront residents are also able to easily access the promenade and beach. 

The home is situated in a four storey building with differing levels of need on each floor

• Keswick - Ground floor: for those more independent 
• Grasmere - First floor: general nursing care 
• Langdale - Second floor: general nursing care and those with more complex needs 
• Derwent - Third floor: for those with advanced dementia/Alzheimer’s and palliative care, as well as Elderly Mental Health. 

Offices, a hairdressers salon and the laundry service were also located on the third floor. Palliative care is provided at The Sands Care Home and this made up for a high percentage of the people currently residing at the home during the visit. 

Each floor has a communal lounge, dining room, communal bathrooms, a nursing station and a small kitchen area; with meals being prepared on the third floor in the main kitchen and transported to the other floors at mealtimes. 

During the visit some of the residents were utilising the communal areas, especially the dining rooms, whilst others had preferred to stay in their rooms. 

The residents appeared well cared for and safe, although they appeared subdued during the visit and in need of more stimuli by way of more activities and engagement with staff. Encouraging more residents out of their rooms would also enable new friendships to be formed and residents to feel more included in the day to day activities. 

It was felt by Healthwatch Lancashire representatives that the care home environment would benefit from a more vibrant, stimulating appearance such as that demonstrated on the Derwent floor; and features which encourage memories and reminiscing are of great benefit to those who have advanced dementia/Alzheimer’s. Good practice needs to be shared between the floors and there is a need for a more overall cohesiveness to the care home rather than four individual teams each having a different approach.

Residents were generally happy with their care and were praising of the staff; and observations showed them to be relaxed with staff and at ease within their environment. The majority of the residents remained in their chairs throughout the visit although some were observed moving round with support. 

Feedback from relatives was positive, with good communication and care being talked about. Both relatives spoken with said that they would recommend the care home to others. 

Staff were happy in their roles, felt well supported and that they had had sufficient training. The need for more activities was raised by several members of the team, as was more one to one time for residents who do not enjoy group activities. One staff member suggested monthly residents meetings to enable residents to be involved in their care. All staff members who provided feedback said that they would recommend the care home to a close relative or friend.