Background to this inspection
Updated
15 September 2021
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. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act.
Inspection team
This inspection was completed by one inspector. One Expert by Experience telephoned people who received care from the service and relatives to obtain feedback about their 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.
Service and service type
H & H Healthcare Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they 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
This inspection was announced. We gave the service 48 hours' notice of the inspection because we needed to be sure the provider would be available to assist. Inspection activity started on 10 August 2021 and ended on 11 August 2021.
Before the inspection
We reviewed information we held about the service. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about, such as allegations of abuse, and accident and incidents. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgement in this report. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with six people who used the service and five relatives to gain their views about the service. We also spoke with seven staff which included care workers, the care coordinator, the care practitioner, the manager and the registered manager. We received feedback from a further three staff via email.
We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care plans and risk assessments. We also looked at records relating to the management of the service such as audits and a variety of policies and procedures developed and implemented by the provider.
After the inspection
We received feedback from one healthcare professionals.
Updated
15 September 2021
About the service
H & H Healthcare Limited is a domiciliary care agency registered to provide personal care to people in their own homes. The service provides care and support to people which include personal care and medicine support. At the time of this inspection, the provider informed us that they were providing personal care to 35 people who used the service.
Not everyone using H & H Healthcare Limited received a regulated activity. CQC only inspects the service received by people provided with 'personal care'; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People received personalised care that met their needs from care staff who knew them well.
Assessments of people's care and support needs were carried out before they started using the service and people and their relatives told us they were involved in planning their care.
People and relatives had confidence in the ability of staff to deliver care effectively. Since the last inspection in September 2019, the service’s induction and training arrangements for staff had been improved and staff told us they were provided with relevant training which gave them the skills and knowledge to support people effectively.
Staff told us they felt supported by their managers and felt able to speak with them. However, staff supervisions were not being completed for all staff regularly. We made a recommendation about this.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
People's nutritional needs were met, and the management team and staff worked in partnership with health and social care professionals to ensure people received effective care.
Systems were in place to manage and respond to complaints. People and relatives spoke positively about how the service was run. However, people told us engagement and communication could be improved. We made a recommendation about this.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 5 November 2019).
On 9 February 2021 we conducted a focused inspection of the Safe and Well Led key lines of enquiry based on risk. This inspection was not rated. We found improvements in both areas and the service was no longer in breach of regulations in these areas.
Why we inspected
We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 9 September 2019. Breaches of legal requirements were found.
The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve, in relation to mental capacity, staff training and support, person centred care and quality assurance and governance systems.
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Effective, Responsive and Well-led which contain those requirements.
The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from Requires Improvement to Good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for H & H Healthcare Limited on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.