Ourway Care Ltd

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 80 (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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

We consistently received positive feedback from people and their relatives. People told us staff respected their dignity and privacy. One person told us, “Staff treat me with respect; they're kind, they understand me and my health.” Relatives spoke highly about the kindness of staff and management. One relative said, “The standards of care I have for [Person] are very high as they’ve been through so very much and deserves everything of the very best and Ourway Care Ltd provide nothing less of perfect and I will be forever grateful.”

People remained at the heart of their care and were involved in the review process to ensure their current needs and support required were reflected in their care plan. People told us staff promoted their privacy and dignity and gave examples to demonstrate this. A person said, “They’re very discreet. They always shut the door, place a towel over you that sort of thing. If you’re watching television in the evening, they go in their own room. They don’t stay with you.”

The registered manager and all staff demonstrated care and kindness. When they spoke about people they supported, it was with genuine compassion and fondness. Staff all knew the people they supported well, including information about their lives before their health diagnosis, interests, hobbies, and aspirations. They treated this information confidentially. Staff were aware of the importance of supporting people to remain involved in events that were occurring throughout the year such as celebrating special occasions, and seasonal events and festivities. Staff consistently told us the best thing about working for the service was the people they cared for. One staff member said, “A lovely personal company dedicated to providing person centred care, offering good support to both staff, clients and their families.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People’s care needs were well managed taking into consideration people’s individual life choices and preferences. People’s care plans and risk assessments included their life experiences, interests and how they wished to be supported. Staff demonstrated they understood people and shared many examples that demonstrated people were treated as individuals. For instance, supporting people to go shopping, and enjoying fast food eateries, coffee shops and bars of their choice. One staff member told us, “When we go out, we make sure [Person] enjoys themself and has fun; they love going out.”

People were treated as individual, and recognised their lifestyle, diverse culture, what was important to them and their hopes and aspirations. One person said, “They always treat me as a person going about my life; make me feel like I am important and how I feel matters.” A person told us staff ensure they were always on time. Management and staff knew people well and celebrated their strengths, abilities and spoke about people with respect and admiration showing genuine regard for their well-being.

The provider was exceptional at promoting people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People and their staff team had established positive and caring relationships with people, and extended to their family members, advocates and health professionals. This helped staff to deliver person centred care and meet people’s individual needs. People and relatives gave examples of how staff supported them to remain as independent as possible and how they wished to live their lives. One person told us their ability to remain independent was promoted as staff were authorised to drive their vehicle. This meant they could make spontaneous decisions to go out or meet up with friends. A person told us, “Ourway Care staff are brilliant; they've helped me to stay as independent as I can, they listen to me, and I get to do the things I enjoy.”

People told us staff respected their private time with family and socialising with friends. A relative told us, “The support workers are nothing short of amazing, they all have an amazing understanding and knowledge of my [Person] ensuring [Person’s] top-notch care, support, guidance, company, compassion, understanding of [Person’s] needs and love!”

Staff knew people's routines and what they liked. Staff told us how the in-depth training and learning about health conditions provided good insight. One staff member told us the training helped them to understand how their role was critical to enabling and supporting people to remain in control of their lives, and to do as much as possible for themselves. One staff member told us, “I enjoy what I do because [Person] is happy and smiles. They have the freedom to go out; go on holiday and we are instrumental in making this happen.” Staff spoke about the importance of good communication; listening and observing, to enable staff to recognise and support people’s choices so they stay in control of their lives. Management shared examples and photographs of people being supported to achieve their aspirations ranging from visiting places of interest, health and fitness, developing new skills, and experiences, which had a positive impact their lives.

Systems were in place to help encourage people to maintain their independence as much as possible, in various aspects of life and daily activity. Staff understood people’s abilities and their care plans had instructions, so staff knew when they needed assistance. People’s care personalised and their care plans were kept under review to meet any changing needs.

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

People and their relatives consistently spoke positively about the management and staff and were happy with how their needs were met and changes responded to. Staff had accessed the handheld devices to raise or respond to concerns about people. This included updating the management team if there was an incident or if people’s needs had changed. Staff told us the on-call manager provided advice and support promptly and if required a member of the management team would attend. A person told us, “I’ll say I want to go to my [Family home]. They’ll get a cab, and they’ll take me. In my personal care there are things I like to do myself.”

People received care from a consistent team of staff specifically recruited for them, which enabled staff to build a strong relationship. A person told us their staff were always responsive and stayed with them during a medical emergency. They added, “We did have one incident where I was hospitalised overnight, and they organised all that. They actually stayed overnight in hospital.”

People’s communication needs and ability had been assessed and supported. Care plans were detailed and kept under review to ensure staff had up to date guidance to care for people in a person-centred way, and to swiftly recognise people’s changing health needs. Staff gave good examples of responding to people’s health needs, for instance recognizing potential issues with a person’s catheter. One staff member told us the seizure training helped them to recognise the signs in advance of an absence seizure and respond to support the person.

People told us if they had any concerns they were listened to, and actions would be taken. A person said, “I think they’re responsive to my needs. I had a chat with the owner of Ourway Care and tell her; she responds to that and so far, they’ve been fine.” Relatives were confident management would act on concern if they had any. A relative told us, “I would honestly not be able to find anything negative to say about Ourway Care Ltd.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

The registered manager was committed to providing a positive working experience for staff. They told us how they and the clinical lead actively worked with staff to develop their knowledge and skills, and to promote their confidence. The management team had an open-door policy and encouraged staff to speak up. A staff member said, “All office staff, including the registered manager, are approachable and responsive, and always try to accommodate clients and staff alike. I feel reassured that any clinical issues are dealt with by a trained and experienced nurse.”

The staff team was diverse and different cultural and faith needs were considered and respected. Staff feedback was positive. They told us they felt part of a team and their well-being was considered. Staff work rotas were fair, and all staff said they had reasonable breaks both during the shifts and rest days. Staff were encouraged to make suggestions at staff meetings. A staff member told us, “[Clinical lead] has a wealth of knowledge and will always help and explain things in a simple way. Supervisions were used as a learning opportunity.”