We carried out a themed inspection looking at domiciliary care services. We asked people to tell us what it was like to receive services from Crossroads Care Havering, as part of a targeted inspection programme of domiciliary care agencies with particular regard to how people's dignity was upheld and how they can make choices about their care. The inspection team was led by a CQC inspector joined by an 'Expert by Experience'; people who have experience of using services and who can provide that perspective.We visited three people in their own home as part of this review and spoke with them and their relatives about their experiences of the support they have received. We spoke with six senior staff at the time of our visit to the office and also spoke with three care workers during our visits to people's homes. We spoke with 25 people who received a service (and/or their relatives) from this agency over the telephone. Out of the 28 people we spoke with during this review, 27 made very positive comments about the quality of the service and one person felt unable to fully comment as they had only received the service a couple of times. All of the people we spoke with told us their care workers and the office staff spoke with them in a polite, helpful and friendly manner.
One person told us 'everyone's really nice and easy to get on with. I have care workers of my own age and it makes it easier for us to relate. We go out for a meal, to see a film or to shopping centres. They are very approachable and will listen to any comments about the service. Crossroads staff have impeccable training and I can't think of a bad word to say'.
Another person told us 'it's a life saver, as I am not so well myself. I can't fault how they care for my son and he adores them. I have no hesitation in leaving him with his care workers'.
All of the people we spoke with told us that their care was personalised to their needs, and they had been involved in discussing and reviewing their care with a senior person from the agency. One person said 'I choose where we go and I choose what we do. If I want to change my care plan I will tell my care worker, write it down and send it to the office'.
People felt that the staff were well trained and understood their needs. People also felt staff were trained to cope with medical emergencies.
Everyone we spoke with told us that they felt safe using Crossroads and if they had concerns they were confident that the manager would thoroughly investigate and resolve any concerns.