Enter and View Report: 1a Erindale Care Home
The purpose of our visit
We’re carrying out a series of visits to learning disability care homes, supported living, and respite facilities in Greenwich to understand the quality of life, and views of those using the service and the experience and perceptions of relatives and carers.
The Health and Social Care Act 2012 allows local Healthwatch authorised representatives to observe service delivery at providers across a range of health and social care services such as hospitals, GPs, and care homes.
Enter and View visits can happen if people tell us there is a problem with a service. They can also occur when services have a good reputation, so we can learn about and share examples of good practice from the perspective of people who experience the service first hand.
Through the programme we help providers to identify what is working well with services and where they could be improved.
How does it work?
Our trained staff and volunteers visit a Greenwich health and social care service. We then spend time at the location, talking both to people receiving care and those providing it.
After our visit, we analyse all the feedback that we have collected and write a report which is published on our website. We share our reports with the organisations involved, the local commissioner, the CQC, and with Healthwatch England.
To protect the safety of service users and staff, we conduct risk assessments and DBS check all our staff and volunteers.
Executive summary
1a Erindale Care Home is a purpose-built one-story building located in Plumstead. The care home is in a quiet residential area with easy access to amenities. The home's communal areas are clean and spacious, and each resident’s bedroom is decorated to suit their personality. During our visit, we witnessed a nurturing environment with warmth and respect. Staff were attentive to residents' needs and tailored daily outings and hobbies to their interests. Family members shared their appreciation for this care, describing the compassionate approach of staff. However, families highlighted concerns with staff turnover and a lack of communication.
Recommendations
- Consider exploring the factors that may contribute to staff turnover and identify ways to enhance staff retention.
- Review staff training to improve communication and interpersonal skills.
- Establish a regular method for group communication and feedback with families, such as a newsletter or group meetings.
- Improve the sensory room and make it a more vibrant and therapeutic environment for residents.
- Enforce policy requiring all visitors to sign the visitor's logbook upon entry.
- Review staff training to include the importance of maintaining accurate visitor logs and ensuring that every visitor signs in.
- Consider placing signage in the reception area reminding visitors to sign-in.
