Empathy Care24 Northampton

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them. People’s needs were assessed when they started to use the service, these were reviewed regularly or as their needs changed. A person told us, “[Staff] assess the care plan with me, they chat about what is going on, every 6 or 12 months.”

The provider planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards. Staff planned people’s care with them to ensure people understood and agreed to the care they were going to receive, and people’s needs were met at each visit. The provider carried out audits and spot checks to check people were receiving their care as planned.

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. They made sure people only needed to tell their story once by sharing their assessment of needs when people moved between different services. People’s records included their medical history and their daily needs, these were shared with health professionals as required. Staff attended regular meetings for updates about the service and feedback about any concerns or ideas for improvements.

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support. Staff reported changes to people’s health and referrals were made to the GP and district nurses where needed. Staff contacted emergency services appropriately to ensure people received prompt care when need. A member of staff told us, “If the service user is not feeling well, I will speak to the GP or call 111 and if its serious or emergency then I will ring 999. I will also inform the next of kin and my office. Afterwards, I will fill a detailed note.”

The provider routinely monitored people’s care to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they met the expectations of people themselves. People’s care was regularly reviewed and senior staff carried out spot checks to ensure people received their care as planned. Where planned, staff provided people with their meals and drinks. A relative told us, “The regular [staff] will cook [Name] bacon and eggs for breakfast, do things for them and that’s the other reason we wanted [staff] as the regular [staff]. They do make sure [Name] has enough to drink, they leave them drinks.”

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment. Staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act and demonstrated how they gained people’s consent before providing care. A relative told us, “[Staff] talk to [Name] and ask their permission.”