Ashbourne House - Stockport

We found the following examples of good practice

● The service had implemented a safe procedure for outside visiting. The service had been innovative in ensuring people had the best possible experience when a friend or relative wished to visit. The service had set up a specific room with a large, sealed window and installed an intercom system to facilitate safe window visits by appointment. This room and intercom was sanitised after each visit.

● The service ensured people were supported to keep in contact with friends and family through the use of telephone and video calls. The service also streamed exercise classes and concerts through video conferencing applications. The registered manager told us they had kept the residents and families up-to- date with the current situation at the home through regular meetings, letters and phone calls.

● The service had comprehensive contingency plans in place to cohort and zone areas in the event of an outbreak. The service was already supporting people in small groups to include those people who liked to sit together in the lounge and dining room. These groups were kept together as much as possible and specific staff members were allocated to support those groups.

● There was a clear policy in place for new admissions to the home; this applied whether it was a new person from the community or someone returning from a hospital stay. The registered manager ensured Covid-19 test results had been confirmed for new admissions and people were tested regularly after admission. These people were required to self-isolate in their room for 14 days and extra infection control measures were put in place. The service had made the isolation room as pleasant as possible and staff ensured regular interaction to offer extra support to people during their isolation.

● The service had made provision for a designated room for staff to change into and out of their uniform and safely use the required personal protective equipment (PPE). Staff were able to place their uniforms straight into the laundry and a staff shower was to be installed. Sanitisation and PPE stations were placed around the building. Staff had made pictures of famous people and artwork where they had added PPE as a fun way of introducing the use of PPE at the home. The service ensured they had sufficient stocks of PPE and had purchased extra supplies.

● Regular testing was carried out at the home of both staff and people who used the service. There was a clear and detailed action plan in place in the event of a positive Covid-19 test. All staff and people had been

risk assessed for their level of vulnerability and anyone identified as particularly vulnerable had an individual risk management plan in place. The home had a regime in place for regularly checking people's current health to quickly identify if someone was showing signs of being unwell.

● The home was very clean. A strong emphasis had been placed on current cleaning schedules and extra twice-daily cleaning regimes had been introduced. These were to ensure all contact points were cleaned with anti-bacterial sprays specifically designed to kill Covid-19. Deep cleans were also regularly carried out. The service had purchased a UV air purifier to remove bacteria and viruses that may be in the air; this was an extra measure to ensure the home was as clean as possible.

● The home did not use agency staff. However, the registered manager had arranged a pre-emptive contingency plan with a local agency to ensure access to single, exclusive agency staff in the event of staff shortages due to an outbreak. Staff had received additional training in infection prevention and control from the public health teams alongside additional internal training. Guidance posters on good infection control and the use of PPE were displayed throughout the home and in the staff changing room.

● The service had a detailed and comprehensive Covid-19 policy and contingency plan. This was kept fully up to date and had been reviewed just two days before our inspection. All information was detailed, contemporaneous, easy to understand and included links to current guidelines and Government policies.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found