Our report following a visit to Grovelands, a large modern purpose built building with 61 single rooms in Yeovil. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit three weeks prior to the visit. The home is split into two sections, the main residential unit and a specialist dementia care unit called ‘Petals’. Recommendations Some of the signs could be larger for example the sign to the lift. Consider ways of involving the local community, e.g. visits by scouts, hosting local clubs. Share the Activities list (Appendix A) with activities staff and residents to further broaden the activities provided. Talk to other organisations about the sharing of minibuses - such as Rethink, local schools and scout groups. Speak to the Patient Engagement Manager at YDH and request that the concerns regarding information sharing are passed to the Director of Nursing. Social Service Reviews – some residents have been waiting 3 years for an annual review. To find out if this is a concern for other homes. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286.

Our report following a visit to The Firs Nursing Home, situated on the outskirts of Taunton. It can accommodate up to 40 residents and there were 38 residents living here at the time of visit. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations That the home consult with ‘Action on Hearing Loss’ and take advice on the installation of hearing loop systems. In the interests of sharing good practice examples from other homes we would invite the home to consider other opportunities for involving the local community. We invite the home to consider other good practices related to resident and family meetings. We have included a list of activities and good practice shared by other homes which we recommend The Firs share with their activities staff and perhaps at resident and family meetings to inspire ideas. In the interests of providing joined up medical care for the residents, it is essential that this information be shared. It is recommended that the home speaks to the Patient Engagement Manager and request that the concern is passed to the Director of Nursing. Medication destroyed when residents go into hospital by hospital staff according to procedures there. Consequently these then need to be re-ordered which causes problems as records show that a double order has been requested by the home or pharmacy. It is recommended this issue be raised with the Patient Engagement Manager. The home looks into talking to other organisations about the sharing of minibuses such as rethink, local schools and scout groups. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286. Enter and View report: The Firs Nursing Home, Taunton Service provider response

Our report following a visit to Rossetti House, a 70 bed care home in a purpose built building which opened in 2013. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations Residents could be offered a choice in the size of portions for meals to incorporate varying levels of appetite. Opportunities for contributing to good practice sharing should be taken up where possible to enable other providers to learn from Rossetti’s standards of excellence. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286.

Our report following a visit to Fletcher house, a large modern 60 bed residential home in Wells. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations That the home consult with ‘Action on Hearing Loss’ and take advice on the installation of hearing loop systems. That the home consider adopting the following examples: Inviting a speaker such as a nutritionist to speak on healthy eating, or a speaker about care fees for example; Ask residents for ideas about speakers; Ensuring residents are asked individually if there is anything they would like raised at the meeting; Including Kitchen and domestic staff in the meetings; Ensuring all residents have a copy of minutes from meetings. Suggestion boxes are placed around the home for those who prefer to comment anonymously. Ensuring fruit is also available in communal areas if this is not already done. Contact ‘You can do’ and Aster Living who are often able to take residents out or transport them to Active Living Groups. There are fewer activities for men and would recommend the Activities staff talk to male residents about this. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286. Enter and View report: Fletcher House, Wells Service provider response

Our report following a visit to Sydenham House is a modern 51 bed residential home in Bridgwater. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations Seek staff and residents views and input into future redecoration. Decoration and furnishings could also be added to the agenda for residents meetings. Priority is given to fixing the other downstairs toilet. Staff induction processes are reviewed to help ensure information such as the lost property box is communicated to all staff. Ensure that residents and staff of individual homes are consulted about decisions such as menus and activities. Attendance at resident/visitor meetings: Holding regular meetings at least quarterly if not more frequently; Making the meeting part of a larger events such as a cheese and wine evening; Inviting guest speakers to talk about a topic of interest such as finance/care home fees, hobbies and crafts, reminiscence or perhaps even a comedian; Ensuring that residents are able to feed into the agenda in advance and received minutes of meetings, noting in particularly ‘You said we did’ type comments; Giving residents who do not wish to attend the opportunity to contribute to the meeting in other ways, e.g. via a key worker or suggestion box. That the notice board be updated regularly. Open discussions with the Somerset Partnership about end of life care. Research other organisations such as Rethink or the Scouts with regard to minibus hire. The home could also consider giving support to smaller groups to organise a taxi share into town if they wish and therefore reduce the cost. Liaise with the male residents to find out if there are activities that they would enjoy. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286. Enter and View report: Sydenham House, Bridgwater Service provider response

Our report following a visit to West Abbey Care Home, Yeovil, which is a large modern home accommodating 90 residents. It provides both residential and nursing care. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations That the home give some thought to providing a selection of toys or small play area for visiting children. That the home look into the ‘Get Connected’ grant which exists to help those in social care access the Internet. Staff recruitment and retention of staff is reviewed and given top priority by the management and Barchester Healthcare. With regard to Improving the attendance of residents/visitors meeting, that the home consider some of the following ideas: Making the meeting part of a larger events such as a cheese and wine evening; Ensuring that residents have the opportunity to add to the agenda and receive the agenda well in advance; Inviting guest speakers to talk about a topic of interest such as finance/care home fees, hobbies and crafts, reminiscence or perhaps even a comedian. This would help to ensure that residents who may not otherwise attend might be motivated to give their input for different reasons; Ensuring that residents are able to feed into the agenda in advance. That the manager liaises with residents about noise levels at night and that policies and procedures are reviewed to ensure that residents are accommodated within the different areas of the home appropriately according to their needs. Where appropriate the home should consider additional soundproofing is needed. That the home consult with ‘Action on Hearing Loss’ and take advice on the installation of hearing loop systems. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286. Enter and View report: West Abbey Care Home, Yeovil Service provider response

Our report following a visit to The Manor Care Home provides residential and nursing care for 68 residents of differing adult age groups. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations The home look into the time it takes for the maintenance service to complete jobs and review the maintenance management. That the ease of manoeuvrability be considered as a priority when planning future redecoration and floor coverings. That the home give some thought to how they can define different areas of the home during maintenance and routine redecoration, to assist residents who may have dementia in finding their way around. Manual handling training is reviewed for all staff and additional training is found where needed. Consult with ‘Action on Hearing Loss’ and take advice on the installation of hearing loop systems. Staff recruitment and retention of staff is urgently reviewed and given top priority by the management and Barchester Healthcare. Review processes concerning how dietary preferences and needs are recorded and communicated to staff. Attendance at resident/visitor meetings: Making the meeting part of a larger events such as a cheese and wine evening; Ensuring that residents have the opportunity to add to the agenda and receive the agenda well in advance; Inviting guest speakers to talk about a topic of interest such as finance/ care home fees, hobbies and crafts, reminiscence or perhaps even a comedian; Ensuring that residents are able to feed into the agenda in advance and received minutes of meetings, noting in particularly ‘You said we did’ type comments. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286. Enter and View report: The Manor Care Home, Bishops Hull Service provider response

Our report following a visit to Croft House Residential Home, a spacious modern home for 67 residents in Williton. The home was notified about the Enter & View visit two weeks prior to the visit. Recommendations Three recommendations were made by our Enter & View team that were addressed by the Home Manager. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286.

In this first Annual Report for Healthwatch Somerset, we share our key challenges and successes, as we started to engage with the public and several of the county’s voluntary and community groups, services and networks. This report was produced by the previous Healthwatch Somerset service provider, The Care Forum. Read our report If you need this report in a different format, please email info@healthwatchsomerset.co.uk or call 0800 999 1286.