Ability Healthcare Cannock Ltd

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

Safe – this means we looked for evidence that people were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people were safe and protected from avoidable harm.

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.

Lessons were learnt to identify actions to keep people safe. A person told us, “Recently they had to call an ambulance for me as I had fallen but that is not something that I make a habit of doing. It was just one of those things.” A relative told us, “There has never been an accident when the staff have been present.” Staff told us they would seek immediate medical attention for anyone who had an accident. They told us they would log the incident on a form and report it to the office staff. The registered manager told us they had completed analysis of individual incidents as they occurred. The analysis enabled actions to be taken to minimise the risk of future incidents, identify learning and share this with staff. Wider analysis was completed quarterly and any themes or trends were identified and actions were taken to prevent future incidents.

The provider worked with people and healthcare partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety was managed or monitored. They made sure there was continuity of care, including when people moved between different services. People and their relatives told us the provider worked with other agencies when supporting people. A relative told us, “The staff liaised with the occupational therapist to find the best position for [person’s name] recliner so that they are comfortable.” The registered manager told us they worked with other agencies to support people such as reablement services, occupational therapists and district nurses. We saw peoples care plans included information and guidance from other professionals. For example, nutrition and hydration care plans included information from speech and language therapy services in some cases. Staff were all aware of the guidance available and could describe how they used this to support people safely.

The provider worked with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and the best way to achieve that. Staff concentrated on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect. The provider shared concerns quickly and appropriately. People told us they felt safe with staff and relatives confirmed people were safe with staff. Staff understood how to recognise the signs of abuse and could describe what they would look for and the actions they would take. A staff member told us, “I would report any incidents and if needed report it directly to the local authority.” The registered manager had a system in place to log any incidents and ensure they were reported to the appropriate body. Where incidents had occurred, these had been reported effectively and learning identified.

The provider worked with people to understand and manage risks by thinking holistically. Staff provided care to meet people’s needs that was safe, supportive and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them. People and their relatives told us staff had the experience to manage risks to people’s safety and people were safe. A relative told us, “[Person’s name] is safe with the staff. They use walking frames with them and a reclining chair, and they are all trained well with these. [Person’s name] has never had a pressure sore but does have continence issues which the staff are aware about, and they know how to deal with this well.” Staff understood risks to people’s safety and could describe how they supported people in line with their risk assessments and care plans. We saw risk assessments had been completed when risks were identified, and these had been used to develop care plans to minimise the risk to people’s safety. These included risks relating to moving and handling, mobility, falls, nutrition and hydration, skin integrity and conditions such as Epilepsy. Regular reviews were undertaken and updates were shared with staff.

The provider detected and controlled potential risks in the care environment. They made sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care. People and their relatives told us staff ensured the home environment was safe and staff used equipment to help people safely. Staff told us there was a risk assessment in place to support them with maintaining peoples home environment. We saw risk assessments were in place which identified how to minimise risks for people and staff. The registered manager told us they risk assessed the property and the equipment people had in place.

The provider made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs. People and relatives told us staff were prompt and stayed for the full time of calls. A relative told us, “We have never had a missed call, and they come on time and stay as long as they are needed.” Staff confirmed they had plenty of time to get to calls. The registered manager told us they had a system in place to enable staff to log in when they arrived and left calls, this helped them to ensure staff were on time and act if there were delays. Staff told us they received an induction to their role and updates to their training. We saw staff were recruited safely following the providers recruitment policy.

The provider assessed and managed the risk of infection. They detected and controlled the risk of it spreading and shared concerns with appropriate agencies promptly. People and their relatives told us staff always used protective equipment when supporting people. Staff told us they had received training in preventing the spread of infection. The registered manager understood how to report any concerns about infections and there was a policy in place to ensure people remained safe.

The provider made sure that medicines and treatments were safe and met people’s needs, capacities and preferences. Staff involved people in planning, including when changes happened. People and their relatives told us staff supported them to take their medicines as prescribed. A relative told us, “The staff give [person’s name] their medicines correctly and record it on their phones.” Staff could describe the guidance they had to support people with their medicines. A staff member said, “Medicines are on the care plan, we know what we are doing, we have the medicines administration chart for what medicine they have to take.” The registered manager had a policy in place and staff had received training on safe administration. Records showed people had their medicines as prescribed.