Cherry Holt Care Home gets awarded outstanding in four key areas, by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
Outstanding ratings were given in the effective, caring, responsive and well-led aspects of the report and the safe aspect was rated good.
The routine inspection took place on 10 June 2019, at the home in Retford, Nottinghamshire that is owned by F.B.C. Care Homes Limited.
Cherry Holt Care Home provides nursing, personal care and accommodation to up to 52 older people. There were 51 people living at the service at the time of the CQC inspection.
The service's approach to skin integrity awareness was effective, original, inclusive, effective and innovative. They produced an informative video featuring staff, people and their relatives and screened this to increase awareness. This was then used as a focus to invite members of the community in to watch the video and discuss it. The video had been nominated for an award.
Staff ensured the atmosphere was extremely welcoming, friendly and homely. One resident said, "They can't do too much for you, they look after me very well. We are one big family." The description of feeling part of a family was consistent with most people, relatives and staff that inspectors spoke with.
All relatives commented on the positive impact on people of the continuity of staffing levels. The service never used agency staff, including nurses, and had clear staffing contingency plans in place to ensure people received care from the staff they knew and trusted, 24 hours a day.
One relative said, "Staff have got to know us over the years and vice versa. I feel a member of the family and completely welcome."
End of life care was exceptional. The service was acknowledged as a leader in developing and using best practice. The local commissioning group confirmed Cherry Holt was integral to the development of their end of life care pathway and that they sought staff input before rolling it out to all care homes. The service had achieved Gold Standards Framework accreditation; this includes training and assessment to ensure the service provides end of life care in line with best practice.
The service respected people's final wishes and ensured families were fully involved and respected. One person who’s relative died told inspectors, "They were amazing – what struck us was how they supported us and what we were going through. It was new to us. A staff member noticed I was losing weight and took me to one side, and we had a long chat. Afterwards they put on a memorial tea. We thought a lot of people there might not remember [person] but they had got all these photos blown up so people could see and remember – it was lovely."
The report highlighted that the service was exceptionally well-led. The registered manager continued to drive a range of improvements and initiatives which continued to have positive impacts on people's health and wellbeing. They were regarded as a leader in best practice across a range of fields and were respected by their staff. Likewise, they were supported by a passionate, caring team of staff at all levels who shared a common understanding and appreciation of people's individualities and needs.
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