Background to this inspection
Updated
12 July 2022
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. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector and an 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.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
Registered Manager
This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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. At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post, but they were not in day to day charge of the service and had applied to deregister. The nominated individual was in day to day charge.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 17 June and ended on 24 June 2022. We visited the location’s office on 17 June.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with four people who use the service and two relatives. We spoke with two members of staff and the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.
We reviewed a range of records. This included three people's care records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.
Updated
12 July 2022
About the service
Caremark, Bath and North East Somerset is a domiciliary care service, providing personal care to people living in and around Bath and North East Somerset. At the time of our inspection there were nine people using the service.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is 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
The quality assurance systems in place did not effectively monitor all aspects of the service. When audits had been carried out, it was unclear if actions had been completed. When incidents were reported, it was unclear how these were investigated or resolved. There was nothing documented to show how staff were informed of quality improvement plans.
Staff spoke highly of the nominated individual and said the service was a good place to work. One staff member said, “[Nominated individual] is very proactive about us giving good support to people and wanting to give everyone really good care.”
People told us they felt safe using the service. People were cared for by staff who knew how to keep them safe and protect them from avoidable harm. Comments included, “Yes, I feel safe because of the way the staff behave” and, “I feel very happy and safe. Staff look after me and ask if I need anything more.” Although there were staff vacancies, the provider told us they were recruiting more staff and monitoring capacity before taking on new packages of care. People were supported to take their medicines safely.
People's needs were assessed, and care plans were in place. People were cared for by staff who had been trained to carry out their roles and who were knowledgeable about the support people needed. 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 and their relatives told us they were cared for by kind and compassionate staff. Staff understood the need to respect people's privacy and dignity. Comments included, “We are very happy with the service. The staff do very well, they’re very caring, just brilliant” and, “The staff are caring, friendly and approachable, all very nice people. They treat us both with dignity and respect, and we laugh together a lot.”
Staff were knowledgeable about people's support needs as well as people's preferences for how they were supported. One person said, “I thought I would hate having carers in our home, but it is such a relief, a way of life now.” There was a complaints procedure in place and people knew how to complain if they needed to.
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
This service was registered with us on 29 October 2021 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.
We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the Well-led section of this full report.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.