Background to this inspection
Updated
21 March 2019
The inspection: We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team: This inspection was carried out by one inspector and one expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. Their area of expertise is older people and dementia care.
Service and service type: This is a shared lives scheme people live with and are supported by carers in the carers home. At the time of the inspection there were two people who received personal care.
The service did not have a registered manager in place at the time of our Inspection an experienced manager was in post and had started the registration process. A registered manager and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection: We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because it is small and we needed to be sure that they would be in.
Inspection site visit activity started on and ended on 31 January 2019. We visited the office location on 31 January 2019 to see the manager and support workers; and to review care records, policies and procedures.
What we did: Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. The provider returned the PIR and we took this into account when we made judgements in this report. We reviewed other information that we held about the service such as notifications. These are events that happen in the service that the provider is required to tell us about. We also contacted Healthwatch Leicestershire. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion created to gather and represent the views of the public. Healthwatch plays a role at both national and local level and makes sure that the views of the public and people who use services are considered. We also contacted the local authority safeguarding team and commissioners.
During the inspection, we spoke with the manager, the head of department, four shared lives support officers and one shared lives carer.
We looked at the care records of two people who used the service. We also examined records in relation to the management of the service such as staff recruitment files, quality assurance checks, staff training and supervision records, safe guarding information and accidents and incident information.
After the inspection we requested and received;
• Further information on end of life care.
• Service priorities and development action plan.
• Evidence of manager supervision.
Updated
21 March 2019
About the service:
Leicestershire Shared Lives recruits, trains and monitors carers who are paid a fee to provide care and support to adults. The person lives with the carer in the carer's home. People who use the service are provided with short and long term accommodation with care in family homes.
People’s experience of using this service:
¿ People had received safe care. The registered provider followed safe recruitment procedures to ensure carers were suitable for their role. An induction process was in place with training and comprehensive written guidance via handbooks and records ensuring care was based on current practice. Carers and support officers had been provided with safeguarding training to enable them to recognise signs and symptoms of abuse and how to report them. People’s medicines were managed safely. Systems were in place to ensure that people were protected by the prevention and control of infection.
¿ People received enough to eat and drink and were supported to use and access a variety of other services and social care professionals. People were supported to access health appointments when required, including opticians and doctors, to make sure they received continuing healthcare to meet their needs.
¿ People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and carers supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. The principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) were followed.
¿ People’s needs were assessed and planned with the involvement of the person and or their relative or representative where required.
¿ Carers and support officers promoted and respected people's cultural diversity and lifestyle choices. Care plans were personalised and provided staff with guidance about how to support people and respect their wishes. Information was made available in accessible formats such as easy read and pictorial to help people understand the care and support they could expect and what they were agreeing to.
¿ People received care from carers who were kind. People were encouraged to make decisions about how their care was provided and their privacy and dignity were protected and promoted. People had developed positive relationships with carers who had a good understanding of their needs and preferences.
¿ The manager and provider had a clear vison and plan in place for continuous learning, improvement and growth. People and staff were encouraged to provide feedback about the service. Carers and support officers received supervision and regular meetings took place that gave them an opportunity to share ideas, and exchange information. The manager understood their responsibility to report events that occurred within the service to the CQC and external agencies.
More information is in the full report
Rating at last inspection: Good 18 June 2016
Why we inspected: This was a scheduled Inspection.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any information of concern is received, we may inspect sooner.