Dolphin Manor

Everyone we spoke with told us Dolphin Manor was a homely place to reside and visit, that staff were kind and caring and that people were treated with respect.

People were involved in their day to day lives through being empowered to make their own choices about where they spent their time, who with and how. Their independence was promoted and staff actively ensured people maintained links with their friends and family.

People's health was well managed and staff had positive links with professionals which promoted wellbeing for them.

Staff showed a genuine motivation to deliver care in a person centred way based on people's preferences and likes. People were observed to have good relationships with the staff team.

The environment was safe and people had access to appropriate equipment where needed. Staff had received appropriate training and support to enable them to carry out their role safely, including the management of medicines.

People felt the use of agency staff at times affected the experience they had of the service. The registered manager worked hard to provide consistent agency workers to overcome this. An ongoing project to recruit suitable permanent workers was in place.

Staff had a good knowledge of how to keep people safe from avoidable harm however we recommended that the provider commence using evidence based risk assessment tools to aid the knowledge staff have.

People were supported to take their medicines in a safe way, but staff did not always have robust details on when to give medicines that were prescribed 'as and when required'.

There was enough staff on duty at the right time to enable people to receive care in a timely way. In addition, people had opportunity to access a wide range of activities including access to the local community.

Lots of checks were completed by staff, the registered manager and provider to check the quality and safety of the service. We found some areas for development which the provider had not recognised. The provider agreed to review their approach and make necessary changes.

The registered manager and senior team worked well to lead the staff team in their roles and ensure people received a good service. People, their relatives and staff told us they were approachable and that they

listened to them when they had any concerns or ideas. All feedback was used to make continuous improvements to the service.

More information is in Detailed Findings below