Background to this inspection
Updated
23 June 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. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection team consisted of an inspector, who visited the service and spoke to staff, and an Expert by Experience who spoke to people who used the service and their friends and relatives.
An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal and nursing care to people living in their own houses and flats.
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
We gave the service 24 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.
We visited the office location on 12 May 2020.
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 judgements in this report.
What we did before inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from professionals who work with the service. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection-
We spoke with four members of the staff team including the registered manager, the office manager and carers. We spoke with three people who used the service and six relatives and friends of people who used the service. We also received feedback from two professionals who work with the service.
We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four 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
Updated
23 June 2021
About the service
PRN homecare is a care at home service providing personal and nursing care to 57 people at the time of the inspection. Home care services provide care to people in their own homes.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. At the time of the inspection no one was receiving nursing care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal or nursing 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
People were kept safe by well trained, caring staff who enjoyed their jobs and got on well with people. A person told us, “I feel very safe and relaxed with my new carer, because they are good natured and a natural carer, this mean they know their job well and is the right personality. They want to help. I didn’t have to express any preferences and I do not want to change my current carer at all."
Staff were recruited safely and since the last inspection the detail in care plans had been improved which meant staff could give better person-centred care. Risks were well managed, and staff had clear guidance on what to do in the event anything went wrong.
Staff training had continued during the COVID-19 pandemic, both online and in person when it was safe to do so. Staff were trained in good infection control and people felt reassured by the calm support of the staff. A person said, “I would say that carers know their job well, they are certainly well equipped, and they come dressed in all their gear, masks, gloves. They put all the stuff on before they come in and they wash their hands and have disinfectants.”
People enthused about the care they received from PRN Homecare. Everyone we spoke to was happy with the care and many people said the carers were more like friends or family as they knew them so well. People told us they felt the care was above and beyond. For example, carers took time to talk to people about things that were important to them. A relative told us, "For a start they all are very jolly and cheerful when they come, it's all nice smiles, which we can’t see under masks, but we can detect in their voices. They always ask how my relative is, spend a good amount of time talking with them.”
The service was efficient and responsive. People told us they had input into their care and the staff always talked to people and asked for consent during care. Relatives told us they felt included in the decisions about care, “We work with the carers because my relative will probably deny that their needs have increased, we will need evidence. The carers are kind and gentle they all have the patience of saints. They know how to talk with (my relative), and they joke with them and then my relative is more co-operative.”
The registered manager provided people with a rota of the staff who would be visiting in the coming week so people knew who was going to be calling and providing care. People could request changes of staff or time and the registered manager would sort it out. Staff and people said how flexible the service was. A person said, “I called them to ask them if we could change a visit because my relative was going to the hospital, and another time it was about extra visit on specific week, the person who answered the call wasn't sure so they told me that somebody will come back to me with answer, and they did call back, and sorted as we wanted.”
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.
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 (8 February 2020)
The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when they would improve.
At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
This inspection was prompted by our data insight that assesses potential risks at services, concerns raised and based on the previous rating. This inspection enabled us to review the previous ratings.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for PRN Homecare on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.