Archived: Caremark (Newcastle)

Updated 15 December 2015

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 30 September, 14 and 16 October 2015. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the location provides a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure that someone would be in. The inspection team consisted of one inspector and an expert by experience who had experience of caring for older people. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

We checked the information that we held about the service and the service provider, including notifications.

Due to their communication and other needs, some people were not able to speak with us. We spoke with eight people using the service and three relatives. When visiting the agency office we spoke with the registered Manager, a care co-ordinator and the company director. We conducted telephone interviews with three care workers.

We looked at a sample of records including four people’s care plans and other associated documentation, medication records, four staff recruitment, training and supervision records, the provider’s policies and procedures, complaints and audit documents.

Updated 15 December 2015

We carried out an inspection of Caremark Newcastle on 30 September, 14 and 16 Ocober 2015. The inspection was announced. This was to ensure there would be someone present to assist us. We have not previously inspected Caremark Newcastle.

Caremark Newcastle provides personal care for people in their own homes. At the time of the inspection there were 20 people in receipt of a service. Personal care was provided to people in Northumberland either by private arrangements or on a spot contract basis.

The service had a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People told us they felt safe and were well cared for. Staff knew about safeguarding vulnerable adults. The two alerts we received during the past two years have been dealt with appropriately, which helped to keep people safe.

We were told staff provided care safely and we found staff were subject to robust recruitment checks. Arrangements for managing people’s medicines were also safe.

Staff obtained people’s consent before providing care. Arrangements were in place to assess people’s mental capacity and to identify if decisions needed to be taken on behalf of a person in their best interests.

Staff had completed relevant training for their role and they were well supported by the management team. Training included care and safety related topics.

Staff were aware of people’s nutritional needs and made sure they were supported with meal preparation and food shopping where necessary. People’s health needs were identified and staff worked with other professionals to ensure these were addressed.

People had opportunities to participate in activities and in accessing their local communities. The kind and caring approach of staff was praised by people we spoke with. Staff explained clearly how people’s privacy and dignity were maintained.

Staff understood the needs of people and we saw detailed assessments were undertaken before packages of care were developed. Care plans were detailed and person centred. People’s relatives spoke highly about the care provided.

People’s views were sought and acted upon, through annual surveys, care review arrangements and the complaints process.

People receiving a service and staff expressed confidence in the registered manager and felt the service had good leadership. We found there were effective systems to assess and monitor the quality of the service, which included feedback from people receiving care.