Our philosophy of care

We aim to provide holistic care fully involving both the residents and relatives, with in depth planning and constant evaluation of care plans to ensure that physical, social and emotional needs are met; all of our residents are individual and person centred.

We strive to preserve and maintain the core values of care, which are fundamental to the philosophy of our home, dignity, respect, individuality, privacy, right and fulfilment. All of our residents are individual and some have some have needs that others do not.

We like our residents and their relatives to be able to influence the menu, the activities and other aspects of the home. The manager runs regular resident and relative meetings, where all these items are discussed and inputs taken into account during the planning of these.

We have a process for dealing with receipt of, recording and resolution of all complaints, in order to comply with the regulations.  We will make sure that the arrangements for investigation of complaints are fair and transparent.

Complaints and suggestions from Service Users or their relatives are a valued source of information regarding the Care Quality Commission and Local Government Ombudsman guidelines are adhered to.

There are several distinct levels of dealing with a complaint, audit is important for the speedy and effective resolution that each level is followed.

The principles are;

• The nearer the person dealing with the complaint to the direct service delivery, the better the likely outcome of the complaint. That person has a better detailed knowledge of the service and can react quickly and appropriately. An exception to this principle will be made in the case of a complaint which alleges abuse in which case the complaint will be immediately and directly reported to a senior manager. At this point the safeguarding policy should be followed as per local authority advice and the necessary notification made to the CQC.
• Accepting that personalities can be a factor in complaints, the multiple staff allows this problem to be avoided. The complaints process will only be regarded as “completed” when the complainant or their representative has indicated in writing if possible, that they are satisfied with the outcome of the complaint procedure.
• Complaints and suggestions will in all cases be taken seriously, recorded, their practicality/usefulness investigated, and the instigator informed of the decided outcome.

We will appoint a complaints manager within the business that will be responsible for dealing with all complaints. It could be a registered Manager but whoever is appointed they will be in senior position within the business.

• The home must be able to respond to complaints both by email and in writing. Telephone conversations are not sufficient themselves, as they do not constitute a proper record.
• The website has an email address and inbox for managing complaints.
• We will respond to complaints within 24hours of receipt either in full, or to acknowledge that it will be investigated Update the complainant in writing about progress during the investigation.
• The complaint procedure must be publicly available.
• Investigations and outcomes will be recorded on the complaints form, adding additional sheets as required.
• All employees are warned that written complaints recording rules must be complied with, and those records held where they are freely available to supervisors and managers. Any attempt to conceal a complaint may give rise to disciplinary action.
• The complainant will be requested to examine the written records of the complaint and sign to indicate agreement with the outcome.
• In the event of a continued disagreement which cannot be resolved internally, the complainant will be advised to approach an appropriate external authority, such as the CQC, funding authorities such as Social Services or NHS, an independent advocacy services are available. The registered Manager should support the Service User to contact an appropriate independent advocate if the resident shows any signs of being unable to fully make, or further pursue, the complaint.
• The completed complaints form will then be handed to the Registered Manager for permanent filing, centrally and on the service user file.
• The Management meeting will periodically (recommended every three months) review all complaints since the pervious review in order to identify trends and matters which may have appeared to be relatively minor at the time, but which indicate a deeper problem.
• The service action plan should be updated to include all action to be taken to resolve any requirements of recommendations made following any investigation.

A complaint can be made; by telephone; in writing; by email; or in person.

All responses will be made/followed up in writing (preferably by email)

Complaints to be made to;

Cloverdale Care Home
68 Butt Lane
Laceby
DN37 7AH

val.evans@cloverdalecarehome.net

Complainants must receive acknowledgement within 24hours. In this acknowledgment we will let you know who will be investigating the complaint.

There is a time limit of 12 months for the acceptance and investigation of complaints.

Once your complaint has been fully dealt with by Cloverdale Care Home, if you are not satisfied with the outcome you can complain to the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO). The LGO provide a free, independent service. You can contact the LGO Advice team for information and advice, or to register your complaint;

0300 061 0614

advice@lgo.org.uk

www.lgo.org.uk

The LGO will not usually investigate a complaint until the provider has had an opportunity to respond and resolve matters.

Our service is registered with and regulated by the Care Quality Commission. The CQC cannot get involved in individual complaints about providers, but is happy to receive information about our services at any time. You can contact the CQC at;

03000 616161

Care Quality Commission (CQC)
National correspondence
City gate, Gallowgate
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 4PA