Merseycare Julie Ann Limited

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

Well-led – this means we looked for evidence service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture.

At our last assessment we rated this key question Inadequate. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 71 (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 shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities. Since our last assessment, the provider had undertaken significant work to improve the culture of the service. A range of policies and processes were developed which focussed on improving the quality of care plans, the completion of care reviews and rota management. The providers strategy and vision was clearly outlined in business and service improvement plans.

The provider had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation.

The registered manager was capable and compassionate and alongside other leaders demonstrated a significant commitment to improve the service. They were open and honest about areas where improvement was required and could demonstrate their ongoing action plan in place to drive these improvements.

The providers organisational structure showed the service was set up to deliver their objectives with roles, responsibilities and accountability clearly defined in a range of standard operating policies and procedures. Leaders held regular meetings with all teams to maintain oversight and deal with any issues that arose in achieving compliance.

The provider demonstrated a commitment to improve the quality and safety of the service by increasing resources to support the registered manager to meet the fundamental standards.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. A whistleblowing policy was in place to guide staff on how to report concerns and made clear how they would be protected. Staff understood their responsibility to report poor care and unsafe practice. They told us they would not hesitate to share any concerns and felt they would be listened to by leaders. A staff member told us, “If I see poor practice, I would report it to the office straight away."

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them. Staff told us they felt included in the running of the service as they felt their views were sought, listened to and respected. The provider had a range of policies in place which focussed on promoting equality and diversity in the staff team. The provider supported their international workforce, and staff told us they were made to feel welcome and included. Comments included, “I was made to feel very welcome in the company, everyone is treated fairly” and “To be honest MCJA [Merseycare Julie Ann Limited] has been my first job in this country. My honest opinion, it’s been so wonderful working with them. They support you while at work when you face challenges."

The provider did not always implement effective governance systems. Auditing processes had improved since our last assessment which led to better oversight in areas such as call monitoring, care reviews and care planning. However, some further improvement was needed to ensure all audits and checks were effective at identifying and addressing concerns. For example, not all medicines audits identified records related concerns and, where concerns were identified, there was limited evidence of what action had been taken to improve. Care plan audits had not always identified shortfalls in the level of detail included in people’s care plans such as individual risk assessments and end of life care plans.

The provider’s monitoring systems had already identified some of the shortfalls and we were assured they were undertaking a series of actions to improve the quality and safety of the service. The provider was responsive to our feedback and updated their ongoing action plan to strengthen auditing processes in relation to medicines and care planning.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement. The provider was linked in with the local authority to make sure they were up to date with any new projects and pilots. For example, they demonstrated how they worked in partnership on a project to promote people’s independence with their mobility.

The provider held meetings for people and their relatives in the local community. This ensured leaders were more visible to the people they supported. Local authority partners provided positive feedback about their working relationship with the provider and described the providers commitment to get things right and make improvements following our last assessment.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. It was clear how much learning had been undertaken and positive change embedded since our last assessment. The provider was responsive to regulatory feedback and had made improvements to the overall quality and safety of the service. This improvement journey was acknowledged by people, relatives and staff who described better experiences of care as a result of the improvements. A staff member told us, “Yes, I feel there has been improvement. I don’t feel we are rushing. We are there present and mindful in the calls, that is one of the biggest improvements. Also, the regular supervisions are more open and things I have asked and things they have given me feedback on has helped me."