Reliable Community Care Services 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 was the first assessment for this 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.

The provider had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. Staff listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were learnt to continually identify and embed good practice.

There were systems in place to ensure lessons were learnt when things went wrong. The registered manager told us they discussed learning from accidents, incidents and complaints with staff. If an urgent issue came up, they would call an emergency WhatsApp meeting where the whole team could be made aware of what happened. They would consider what actions to take to make sure the issue didn’t happen again. A staff member told us, "We get a company-wide WhatsApp message when something happens. We discuss and have training about whatever the problem was.”

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.

A person using the service told us, “My relative looks after all my medical appointments, but I am sure if I became ill my carers would get me the help I need.” The registered manager told us they worked closely with people and their families, GP’s, and health care professionals. They told us that after a person using the service recently went into hospital, they went to see them and showed the nurses the person’s care plan. They advised the nurses how the person liked to be cared for, how they needed to be turned and what they liked to eat.

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 were protected from abuse. A person using the service told us, “I feel very safe with the carers I have; they are very caring.” There was a safeguarding policy in place and staff had received training on safeguarding adults from abuse. A staff member told us they would report to the registered manager if they suspected a person using the service was being abused. The registered manager understood their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding and told us they would report any concerns to the local authority and CQC if required. They told us there had been no safeguarding concerns raised at the service.

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.

We saw risks to people had been assessed to ensure their needs were safely met. Assessments included the levels of risk for people in areas such as falls, moving and handling and eating and drinking. Risk assessments included information for staff about the actions to be taken to minimise the chance of accidents occurring. For example, where a person had been assessed as being at risk of falling, we saw guidance was in place for staff on how to support them to move around their home safely. This person told us, “My carers know how to help me to get up. I am very confident that they know what they are doing.” A staff member told us, “I had induction training and I shadowed experienced staff when I started working here. The registered manager and an occupational therapist showed me how to support people with hoisting equipment.”

The provider detected and controlled potential risks in the care environment. They made sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care.

Risk assessments had been carried out in people’s homes to protect them and staff who provided care. These assessments related to for example, fire safety, health and safety and the environment. The fire safety risk assessment indicated that smoke detectors had been checked, escape routes were not blocked and there were no trip hazards. A staff member told us they risk assessed the environment where a person was assessed at risk of falls. They worked with the person to reduce trip hazards and following input from an occupational therapist non-slip flooring was put down.

The registered manager told us they had sent a WhatsApp message to all staff reminding them to make sure people had plenty of drinks and to keep their rooms cool in the current hot weather.

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.

A relative told us, “The staff are very reliable, they are usually on time but if there’s a problem, they get in touch.” The care coordinator showed us an electronic system they used to allocate staff calls to the people they supported. Staff used a QR code to log in to and log out after calls. The system alerted the care coordinator in real time if there was a late or missed call. If a call was showing as late, they contacted the staff member, enquire on their whereabouts and let the person know the carer was running late. We saw a late and missed call log; there had been no missed calls and a low number of late calls.

Safe staff recruitment practices were in place. Recruitment records included application forms with full employment histories, employment references, proof of identification, health questionnaires and DBS checks. DBS checks provide information including details about convictions and cautions held on the Police National Computer. The information helps employers make safer recruitment decisions.

We saw a training matrix which indicated that staff had completed training in areas such as mental health, learning disability and dementia awareness, equality and diversity, privacy and dignity, fluid and nutrition, safeguarding adults, food hygiene, basic life support, health and safety, infection control, manual handling, medicines awareness, understanding diabetes, skin care, the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. A staff member told us, “I support some people with dementia, so I had training on dementia. This was helpful because it raised my awareness of the condition. I have a better understanding of how to support people with dementia.”

Staff new to care had completed an induction in line with the Care Certificate. The Care Certificate is an agreed set of standards that define the knowledge, skills and behaviours expected of specific job roles in the health and social care sectors. Records showed that staff received regular supervision from the registered manager.

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.

The provider had an infection control policy in place. Staff told us they used and had access to plenty of personal protective equipment. Training records confirmed staff had completed training on infection control.

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.

Where people required support to take their medicines, we saw this was recorded in their care records. The care coordinator showed us electronic medicines records, this indicated that people were receiving their medicines on time. This system was monitored in real time by the care coordinator to make sure people were receiving their medicines as prescribed. Staff had received training on the administration of medicines and their competence in administering medicines had been assessed by the registered manager.

We visited some people in their homes and saw lists of medicines included in their care records. A person using the service told us, “My daughter manages my medicines; she leaves them out for me. I have a reminder on my clock when I need to take them. The staff will check that I have taken them.”