Enter and view: Westbury Grange Care Home

Healthwatch Milton Keynes conducted an announced Enter and View visit to Westbury Grange Care Home on the 18th January 2019. This visit was part of a series of Enter and View visits to 16 council funded care homes. Semi structured interviews were carried out with 7 residents alongside observations of the care home, itself.

The Enter and View representatives observed that the premises were clean, bright and comfortable with a well maintained garden. It was found that most residents displayed evidence of effective personal care and that there were a variety of organised activities on offer, including singing and arts and crafts. It was observed that some staff provided one-to-one assistance for residents requiring help at meal times and there was consideration for their needs if they required pureed food. Residents reported that they felt they were not easily able to go outside to the garden, without asking for support from visitors. However, they were complimentary of the staff at the home as there was an overall feeling that staff were approachable and willing to offer their time to residents. The residents reported that they were satisfied with the food provided at the Home and that they felt the quality and quantity of food was adequate.

Healthwatch Milton Keynes made a number of recommendations for the Care Home. These included that staff may need to proactively support residents in spending more time outdoors; could consider engaging the support of the Dementia Information Service to explore methods of addressing the needs of residents displaying behaviours synonymous with symptoms of neurological disorders; Review laundry processes to ensure that items are returned to the correct residents; Consider de-cluttering the noticeboards to ensure clear provision of information and aid ease of use by residents and visitors; and Ensure staff are alert to cues that residents may require assistance with eating and are responding quickly to requests.

The service provider responded to the recommendations made in the report.