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CQC inspection report summary – EASY READ 1
What we think about
Mersey Care NHS trust’s
wards for people with
learning disabilities and
autism
Easy read report
Address:
STAR unit
Rathbone Hospital
Mill Lane,
Liverpool
L13 4AW
Phone: (0151) 250 3000 or
(0151) 471 7795
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About the Care Quality Commission
We are an organisation called the
Care Quality Commission (CQC).
Our job is to check if every care
service is:
• Safe
• Effective (meaning it gives
good results)
• Caring
• Responsive (meaning it meets
people’s needs)
• Well-led (meaning it is
managed well).
We then give the service ratings (or
scores) of:
• Outstanding (meaning really
good)
• Good
• Requires improvement
(meaning it needs to get better)
• Inadequate (meaning it is poor).
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About this service
The STAR unit is a hospital for
people with learning disability and
autism, where patients receive
assessment and treatment.
When we checked the STAR unit,
nine patients could stay there.
Mersey Care NHS Trust also run
other learning disability wards.
These are locked wards at
Whalley in Lancashire (formerly
known as Calderstones) and a
short-break respite service called
Wavertree Bungalows. We did
not check these wards this time.
We only visited the STAR unit.
We checked the STAR unit on
6 November 2018
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What we think about this service
Across all the areas we
checked, we think this
service is good
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1. Is the service safe?
For the question, ‘Is the
service safe?’, we think
the service is good
Staff knew how to keep people
safe from harm.
Staff had completed basic and
extra training to help them
support patients properly.
Staff knew how to keep the
ward clean.
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Staff knew how to give patients
their medicine safely.
Staff supported patients with
epilepsy. Staff wrote good care
plans so that everyone knew
what to do for patients with
epilepsy.
BUT
There was no liquid soap in the
ward toilets. Patients had to use
sinks in their bedrooms to wash
their hands.
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2. Is the service effective?
For the question, ‘Is the
service effective?’, we
think the service is good
Staff wrote detailed care plans
for each patient. This included
care plans written in easy-read
to help patients understand
them.
Staff supported patients so that
their mental health improved.
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Staff checked patients’ physical
health regularly to make sure
patients kept well.
Staff worked together and
talked to doctors so patients got
the right help.
Staff supported patients to
make choices and asked
patients if they agreed with
decisions about their care.
BUT Some detained patients
did not understand their rights.
We told staff that they could
write better records and care
plans so every detained patient
had their rights checked.
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3. Is the service caring?
For the question, ‘Is the
service caring?’, we think
the service is good
Staff gave people enough
privacy.
Staff were kind and treated
patients with respect.
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Staff supported patients to have
a say in their care, treatment
and future.
Patients were asked their views
on how they wanted to improve
things on the ward.
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4. Is the service responsive?
For the question, ‘Is the
service responsive?’, we
think the service is good
Staff offered a range of activities
for patients.
Staff supported patients to
improve their skills (such as
cooking) to help them live more
independently when they left
hospital.
Patients were helped to keep in
touch with their families and
carers.
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Staff knew how to support
patients if they were not happy
and wanted to complain.
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5. Is the service well-led?
For the question, ‘Is the
service well-led?’, we
think the service is good
Staff met regularly to talk about
how things on the ward could
improve.
Managers checked that ward
staff were providing good quality
care and listened to patients.
Staff had improved the checks to
make sure that the ward was
safe and patient-focused. The
checks helped staff to look at
how the ward could improve.
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Staff were supported by
managers who understood the
needs of patients with learning
disabilities and autism.
Staff had made improvements
from the last time we checked on
the STAR unit.
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What happens next?
We rated the STAR unit as
good. Staff were meeting all the
standards that we check. We
have also written a more
detailed report with more
information in it.
We have made some minor
suggestions on how staff at the
STAR unit might improve. We
will go back to check this again
in the future.
Getting in contact with us
If you would like this report in
another format or language, or
you would like to tell us
something, you can contact us
at:
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Phone: 03000 61 61 61
Email: [email protected]