By Kirstie Jones, Head of Client Services and Environmental Health Expert at Navitas Safety
Achieving an ‘Outstanding’ CQC rating is a testament to a care home’s commitment to providing exceptional care. It’s a goal that many aspire to, but few attain – evident by the fact that only 3.5% of care homes in the UK have this accolade.
The prospect of a care home inspection can feel daunting, especially when they’re usually unannounced, but with knowledge of what to expect, and how to prepare, you can turn the process into an opportunity for continual improvement, rather than a cause for stress. Here’s how:
Be proactive rather than reactive
Don’t wait for a CQC inspection to raise concerns, and then set the wheels in motion. Proactive internal audits are essential for maintaining and improving care standards, allowing you to identify and address potential issues early, and to be audit ready all of the time. These audits should be thorough, covering all aspects of health and safety, including resident care, food safety, and incident management.
Although recording these audits via pen and paper is adequate, using digital tools to conduct internal audits can help to streamline the process and make sure nothing is overlooked. They can be customised too, and as everything is all in one place, it’s one less thing to scramble around for should you receive a visit from an unexpected visitor! The added benefit is that everyone that needs to gets to see the results straightaway and anyone with responsibilities for signing off actions can do so in a transient way – ‘tracking and chasing’ is key!
Take food safety seriously
Compliance with the Food Safety Act 1990 and any associated/assimilated regulations is mandatory for care homes, and the CQC will rigorously assess your food safety practices during inspection, ensuring the wellbeing of residents. Given their vulnerability and higher likelihood of severe complications from foodborne illnesses, it’s essential to have watertight food safety practices in place. When you take into account specific dietary needs and allergies too, there are a lot of considerations!
Without strict processes in place, it’s likely something could get overlooked, with potentially devastating consequences. Customised checklists for tasks such as food storage checks, kitchen cleaning routines, special diets and allergies, residents’ mini-kitchens cleaning checks, post-caring activities, and handwashing procedures will help. Implement these checklists in daily operations, sign them off digitally within seconds, and assign specific tasks to different carers and teams to uphold the highest standards.
Allow automation to help
Hypothermia is a serious issue which can develop in older, vulnerable people, even after short exposure to cold weather. In a care home setting, water temperature is also important to prevent colds, but also possibly scalding if not managed correctly. There are a number of areas where you’ll want to monitor temperature, i.e. rooms, baths and basins, medicine storage, and food. During inspections, you’ll need to show that temperatures are within safe ranges, and one way of doing this is through an automated temperature monitoring system.
Smart sensors installed in fridges and freezers, to give an example, can automatically monitor temperatures every 30 minutes. If anything goes wrong, the relevant team members will receive immediate alerts. This eradicates the need for routine manual checks, freeing up staff to dedicate more time to interacting and caring for residents.
Fire safety first
Fire safety in care homes demands specific considerations due to residents’ limited mobility. Regular fire drills, comprehensive staff training, and clear evacuation plans are essential, making sure the care home’s layout is designed to facilitate a quick and safe exit where required. Consulting with fire safety experts can further enhance preparedness and show that you’re going above and beyond to protect those you care for.
Prevent slips, trips, and falls
Many non-fatal injuries at work are a result of slips, trips, and falls. With more due care, a lot of these incidents can be avoided, which is why it’s important to carry out shorter monthly inspections to identify anything from obstructions and trailing cables to loose or uneven flooring.
With over 16,700 care homes in the UK, and nearly 70% of residents affected by dementia or severe memory issues, it’s also important to provide ample signage throughout the premises, with clear, prominent signage and visual aids like icons and bright colours to highlight hazards effectively. Your customised internal checks can assist in ensuring these safety signs are still present and correct and to action any areas that fall short.
Don’t forget to report ‘near misses’
Near misses are often swept aside due to their less serious nature. As they don’t result in any physical injury, harm or damage to a person or property, management may feel it’s a waste of time to report on, or won’t lead to any useful insights. However, these incidents ‘paint a picture’ and provide essentialdata to detect and mitigate hazards early and prevent less serious incidents from becoming accidents.
It’s better to be over-cautious than under-cautious – for example, a cracked floor tile might seem like a minor issue, which can wait to be fixed, but someone could easily trip over it, resulting in a near miss or accident. Internal checks help you prioritise actions based on risk as you are able to have an overarching view of safety compliance generally and are then able to target areas for improvement.
Conclusion
Achieving a ‘Good’ rating from the CQC is commendable, indicating that a care home is providing safe, effective, and compassionate care. However, the leap from ‘Good’ to ‘Outstanding’ is a significant one, reflecting a level of excellence that goes above and beyond standard expectations. By following the advice above, and focusing on continuous improvement and safety engagement, well-led care homes will stand out as a beacon of excellence and a place where individuals will trust their loved ones are being cared for.
