Skelton Court

We found the following examples of good practice.

● Safe arrangements were in place for professional visitors to the service. These included temperature checks, risk questionnaire, hand sanitisation and wearing a mask. Visitor plans were being developed to support visits by relatives when it became safe to do so.

● Staff had received additional training in infection prevention and control and how to use personal protective equipment (PPE) properly. There were sufficient stocks available including masks, gloves, aprons and hand sanitiser. Staff were seen to be wearing PPE appropriately.

● Hand sanitisation stations were located around the service. These were decorated with brightly coloured rainbows. This helped people feel positive about using them, particularly if they didn't understand why they needed to regularly clean their hands.

● There was a regular programme of COVID-19 testing in place for staff and people using the service. This meant swift action could be taken if anyone received a positive test result.

● The service did not use any agency workers and permanent staff did not work in any other care settings. This reduced the risk of infection spread between care services.

● Furniture in communal areas had been moved to support social distancing. Two additional rooms were also used as smaller dining and quiet areas. This reduced the risk of cross infection.

● The service made effective use of zoning to help keep people and staff safe. When people were supported to self-isolate in their rooms, posters were put up to confirm it was a 'red' zone. Other rooms and areas were 'green' zones. These zones were also used to support laundry processes.

● Cleaning schedules were in place and updated to included additional cleaning which took place during the pandemic period. This included high touch areas and deep cleans after anyone finished a period of self- isolation. This reduced the risk of cross contamination.

● Infection prevention and control audits took place and action plans were developed to follow up on any required actions. This ensured the registered manager had effective oversight of all aspects of infection control.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found