Ourway Care Ltd

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs.

This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

This service scored 79 (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 was exceptional at making sure people were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs.

Management and all staff ensured people remained at the heart of their care, providing person-centred care and support, and responding to changes whilst respecting their choices. People’s care plans were comprehensive and personalised. They were detailed with individual preferences and wishes and instructed staff as to the level of support people required, whilst enabling them to remain as independent as practicable. The language used to describe people’s care needs was respectful and showed they were important and valued. One staff member, describing a person-centred approach, said, “It's all about understanding the client, their needs and how I need to support them in a way that they want. It's not one approach for every because everyone is different. I know my client and as a team our approach is same although we are all different. It makes such a difference to our client's life.”

Staff accessed people’s care plans using the hand-held device. People had paper records in their home, and they could access the electronic records if they wished. When a person told us they wanted access to their electronic information, the registered manager immediately arranged this.

People were involved in the process to recruit their team of staff if they wished to be. One person told us, “Being involved in recruiting staff meant I could see if they really wanted to support me and what they could offer me in terms of interests and encouragement.” In some instances, people were involved in practical training completed by staff. For example, where a person receives food via a feeding tube, checks required on a breathing device before use and to recognise potential issues and action required if a fault occurs. This demonstrated bespoke training tailored around the individual’s needs, wishes and abilities.

Positive risk taking for physical and mental wellbeing was supported. People, relative, staff and management shared many examples of how the care and support people received had a positive impact on their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. For instance, enabled people to live their best life. The management team were resourceful, had a creative approach and were instrumental in supporting people to achieve their aspirations and dreams. They worked with experts in health and fitness, and outdoor pursuits to make sure risks were mitigated, tailored support and adapted the activity to meet individual needs. For example, they identified a gym where the fitness coach specialised in training a person with a disability. Management told us a person was taught to surf by a trainer who supports people with disabilities. The person described their life as ‘living life that they never dreamt of doing this'. These were some examples where people had excelled and also inspired others with health conditions and disabilities.

Staff recognised the importance of personal space, family life and socialising. A person told us, “I choose what I wear or want to eat and drink. They always allow me to do what I can for myself - that's important to me. I know one day they will need to help me but I'm not there yet. Another person told us, “If I need time on my own, I’ll go and sit in my bedroom or outside. They support me to do what I want to do for example, gym, archery. If my mates are coming round, they say - do you want us to sit in? yes or no, and they will retire to the room.” A relative said, They’re very supportive. We’ve been out for two train trips, and they fully supported that. We did a flight to [Europe], and one staff came with us.”

The provider understood the diverse health and care needs of people and their local communities, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity.

Management and staff worked well with people, their family, and health and social care professionals to ensure the person continued to receive the care and support they needed. People were supported consistently by their designated team of staff they were familiar and trained to support them.

People’s care records demonstrated staff had engaged with other health providers and the local authority as needed. This helped to provide coordinated care. People were supported by staff to attend a range of appointments. Oneperson said, “I speak to the doctors on the phone. My carers fire off emails and send pictures.”

The management team had good working relationship with health care professionals. They spoke about the specialist teams and the regular appointments involved to manage their health conditions. Feedback from health care professionals was positive in relation to the support provided to people and communication.

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs.

The provider met the requirements of Accessible Information Standard and made sure information was made available in formats people could understand. People’s preferred communication methods were clearly recorded, this helped staff to engage effectively and respectfully. Staff knew people’s communication needs well and provided information in formats they could understand.

People and relatives were confident their personal information was secure. People told us they had access to care plans, both paper records and electronic information. Care plans and health passports contained pictorial information in an easy-to-understand format where required. The registered manager told us they had regular meetings with people and where required their relative to review people’s care and provide necessary information.

Systems were in place to hold confidential information, and the provider had systems to ensure compliance with the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). Staff received training in GDPR, and they understood their responsibilities when handling personal information. Electronic devices were secured and password protected. This helped to ensure people’s private and sensitive information was only shared with authorised persons.

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result.

People and relatives were encouraged to give feedback through complaints and compliments, care review meetings, residents’ and family meetings and surveys. Management and staff ensured people were involved in decisions about their care and changes had been made as a result. A person told us, “If I need to speak with [Registered manager] or [clinical lead], I'll call them or text them and they get back to me.” A relative said, “The communication also is outstanding in regard to any changes in day-to-day health of [Person] that I would not be aware of , any staff changes or any changes in general.”

We consistently received positive feedback from people and relatives in relation to raising complaints. People and relatives knew how to raise concerns, and all were confident any concerns raised would be taken seriously. A person told us “If I had any concerns like about the staff, I would speak with [Registered manager]; but they're all good to me.” Another person told us they had regular visits and phone calls from the management team to check if everything was alright.” Records showed concerns were documented, investigated and analysed to identify any trends and prevent recurrence. Staff told us any lessons learnt was shared with them.

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it.

People’s needs were assessed before they started to use the service to ensure they had the staff trained, and appropriate equipment required for their care was in place. People told us their care and support needs were met by staff. For instance, access to support they needed, when they needed it and could make changes to the times of their visits.

Staff received training in equality and diversity, which helped them recognise and respond to individual needs with fairness and respect. People told us there were no barriers to care.Care plans showed reasonable adjustments were considered and made to promote equal access to care and support, helping ensure people had fair and inclusive experiences.

The provider had an on-call system in place for emergencies and advice. Staff told us on-call manager were always available to provide advice and support. Staff had access to people’s information should this be required in an emergency. This meant staff could provide the essential information when seeking medical advice.

Leaders and staff actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

The management team and staff recognised the barriers people living with health conditions such as spinal injuries, Duchenne's Muscular Dystrophy and associated health needs they may face. Staff were trained in equality, diversity, and human rights and were treated equally and fairly, and relevant policies were in place to support inclusive practice.

People told us they did not experience discrimination.People’s care plans contained information about what was important to them such as family, social, cultural and spiritual needs. People and relatives told us staff listened and valued their individuality and preferences. People’s care was kept under review to promote good outcomes.

The registered manager told us care and support was tailored around people’s needs and provided by short-term support or long-term packages of care. They shared examples of how support provided had resulted in good outcomes for people. For example, providing rehabilitation support and staff working with health professionals to enable a person to reach their maximum mobility. The management team continued to work with the person who wished to explore possible medical treatment options. The person was supported to attend health appointments and staff helped them to understand information. The management team encouraged this person to consider the benefits, possible risk and to write down the questions they may have.

The registered manager told us they work in partnership with the Spinal Injury Association and with other health professionals who were experts in this area to gain advice and information. These insights were cascaded down within team meetings and discussions are held, helping to inform and improve practice.

People were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life.

The provider had an end-of-life policy for staff to follow should this be needed and staff were trained to provide in this area. Where people had expressed their end of life wishes and preferences, these were documented. Staff knew where people’s end of life plan and documents relating to their decisions were kept.

At the time of this inspection the provider was not supporting anyone at the end of their lives, but they had done in the past. Staff and management spoke about how they worked with palliative care team and family, to support a person at the end of their life. They shared the positive feedback received from the person’s family and described how staff provided compassionate and dignified care.