The Old Lodge Nursing Home in Etwall, Derbyshire, providing nursing care for older people, some of whom are living with dementia, have an acquired brain injury or neurological disorder, has been rated outstanding for being caring, responsive and well-led following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), 14 October 2019.
It achieved the score of good for the safe and effective categories.
The CQC report highlighted that to ensure people's dietary needs were met, the registered manager ensured that people had food that was freshly prepared. Where people needed a fortified diet to maintain their weight, fresh foods were used such as fortified milk shakes, and butter and cream added to food.
One member of staff said, "It's much better for people if we use fresh food and ingredients and much tastier. People really enjoy these."
When people needed a specific diet to meet their cultural needs, staff travelled to different shops and restaurants, to ensure the food was prepared to meet their cultural preferences.
Different members of the staff team shared a meal each week with people. A wonderful opportunity to sit with people, share a meal and talk with them, it also gave staff the opportunity to ensure people were happy with the meal and to be part of the care experience.
One member of staff said, "It used to be 'tea with Matron' but now we all get this opportunity and it's wonderful to have this time with people."
CQC inspectors also highlighted that care for people at the end of their life was extremely responsive. There were end of life champions who were trained in palliative care and committed to providing best practice care.
Champions had achieved the end of life quality award, based on NICE guidelines and the Gold Standards Framework for caring for people at the end of their lives. These focused on the quality of care for people nearing the end of their life enabling people to live well and die well in the place of their choosing.
A health care professional confirmed the service had continually achieved this award due to the high standards of care they provided and said, "The staff have a very good understanding of how to respectfully support people."
People were able to share how they wished to be cared for and supported towards the end of their life. The care records included information about their life history including family relationships and important events and religious beliefs. The staff knew how to support people's individual cultural beliefs including who was able to care for them following their death. One relative said, "We have spoken about this and it's like they are trying to cushion it when they talk about it so it's not such a shock and we can plan for everything."
