Enter and View: Lathbury Manor care home

The purpose of this Enter and View programme was to engage with residents, their relatives, or carers, to explore their overall experience of living in Lathbury Manor care home. As well as building a picture of their general experience, we asked about experiences in relation to social isolation and physical activity.

Summary

Lathbury Manor is registered to provide accommodation for up to 29 people who need personal or nursing care. Two of the rooms at the home can accommodate couples.

Demographics: 

One resident was male, and all others were female, the majority of residents in the care home are female. Of the 28 residents living at Lathbury Manor at the time of our visit there are just 5 male residents. The average age of residents interacted with was 88 years.

What we found

"Staff are very well liked by both residents and family members, during our visit we observed compassion and kindness in all interactions with residents...All requests that we saw residents make were actioned in a timely manner, with staff informing residents of their actions and seeking consent at all times...

...the changes that the care home has made over the past 12 months have improved things so much, that the families who said they had been considering a move now believe staying at Lathbury is the best thing for their relatives."

What residents told us: 

"Staff are so caring and lovely."

"So kind and caring, I know [resident] is safe here."

"They are great, help me to remember things."

"It helps seeing [resident] smile and, knowing they are safe, I can sleep at night."

Our recommendations

• We recommend replacing the carpeting in the main hallway and music lounge with flooring similar to the flooring that has been installed in the bedrooms and corridors over the last twelve months. This would resolve the issue of smell that was discussed during our visit. 
• For those residents with more complex needs consider ways of enriching their daily routine by considering more one-to-one time possibly enlisting the help of befriending services through local church groups.
• Additional training for care staff removing/handling hearing aids.