Compassionate Professional Care

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs.

This is the first assessment for this service. This key question has been rated Good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

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 were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs.

The registered manager put people, including their relatives, where appropriate, at the centre of their care which included their preferences and choices. One relative said, “They [carers and managers] ‘bend over backwards’ for us with what we need. We discuss lots of different things such as overnight and respite care if things come to that. They are flexible, changed the gender of staff when we asked and change call times around [family members] appointments.”

Records and feedback from people and staff showed people were supported by the continuity of a regular staff team. Some people had several care workers involved in their care. However, all of them knew people well which contributed to consistent and personalised care provision.

Staff told us their knowledge of people’s needs and preferences and how these were met. A staff member we spoke with was able to provide us with detailed information about the people they supported and how they delivered their care in the way they chose to have it delivered.

People’s care plans included information about people’s care and treatment needs. People and relatives reported being fully involved in discussions and decisions regarding care planning.

The provider understood the diverse health and care needs of people and their local communities, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity.

People received continuity in their care from a regular cohort of well trained staff team who undertook their roles diligently and respectfully to ensure good quality of care was provided. Staff were confident to advocate for people when needed, and to support them to pursue their own interests independently where they could.

People’s care plans were personalised which made it clear what staff needed to do and how, according to peoples identified needs.

The registered manager told us of their positive working relationships with other health and social care professionals and the importance of this to ensure people received integrated care.

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs. One person said, “They [staff] talk to me in a way that makes it easy for me to understand what they are saying.” A relative said, “The information I receive is always easy to understand. If any information needs sharing, they contact me and my other relative first before doing so.”

Staff told us they conversed with people according to their individual communication needs that had been assessed and recorded in their plans of care. One staff member told us how they communicated with a person using tactile touch and non-verbal communication. This approach supported the person to undertake tasks for themselves where they could do in line with their current level of need and overarching support requirements.

Information could be made available in various formats and languages if required. These different methods and approaches in providing information assured us the service was on the whole meeting the requirements of the Accessible Information Standard, ensuring that information and communication were tailored to meet individuals’ needs.

A data protection policy and procedure were in place and followed. Discussions with the registered manager and staff assured us they understood the importance of treating and protecting people’s confidential information securely and sensitively.

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Managers made themselves continually available to address formal and informal concerns and welcomed people’s feedback. The registered manager told us they were continually open to feedback and actively encouraged it. People and their relatives confirmed this. The service had received numerous compliments from people and relatives.

Staff involved people in decisions or concerns about their care and told them what may change as a result. People told us they had faith in the staff and if they had concerns, they would listen to them, act upon them, and involve managers when appropriate.

Every person was provided with a copy of the complaint’s procedure contained within the service user guide when their care arrangements began. We reviewed one complaint the service had received regarding changes to call times. The complaints policy was followed, and the complaint was resolved satisfactorily.

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it. People and relatives said the service was always flexible and responsive.”

People’s needs were fully assessed, and processes were in place to review them as required. Contemporaneous and detailed records were kept which allowed for the effective monitoring of people. Staff monitored and continually assessed people’s needs ensuring any change in presentation were promptly identified and acted upon.

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

The management team worked well to support people to have equal access in their experience to achieve a positive outcome. A consistent approach was in place and emphasis on the importance of verbal and electronic handover records between staff during the rotation of care workers enabled people to be provided with equity in care. This provided people with the same person-centred care from all staff they received care from. For example, enough time was afforded to all people so they could engage in meaningful conversations and stimulation without impacting upon the delivery of their core care needs.

People and relatives overall feedback assured us the provider was focussed on each person they supported receiving the same quality of service irrespective of their individual circumstances and needs.

People were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life. A relative said, “We worked together to devise a critical care package when we needed it with all plans in place for end-of-life care.” Another told us the service had a copy of the DNACPR (do not attempt coronary pulmonary resuscitation document).

Documents which were used by health professionals, such as out-of-hours doctors or emergency services, were readily available. These documents such as ‘Recommended Summary Plan for Emergency Care and Treatment’ (ReSPECT) forms. The provider had provided information to one person whose health was in decline, who had the capacity to do so, together with their family, to discuss with their GP around end of life wishes which enabled a ReSPECT form to be put in place.

Staff had received end of life training. People’s plans of care included considerations and wishes at end of life where they had chosen to disclose them.

The registered manager told us they had adopted the ‘comfort care’ approach to end-of-life-care. Comfort care is distinct from end-of-life care in that it is specifically for situations where treatment is no longer aimed at curing a condition and focuses on peacefulness and dignity rather than recovery. Each person’s care record contained a comfort care plan if they had chosen to complete one.