Lifeways Community Care (Exeter)

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. At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. Staff were observed showing people kindness and compassion. When a person became distressed staff responded quickly and offered guidance and reassurance. Staff spoke about people in a respectful manner. Staff were caring when supporting people. We observed staff using different methods of communication when engaging with people for example, using hand gestures or adjusting the tone of their voice. This showed us that the team understood people’s preferred communication method in accordance with their assessed needs.

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 told us they were treated as an individual, one person said, “The team are great here, I feel they understand me and don’t treat me as a disabled person but a whole person”. Care plans were tailored to people’s needs and included their likes and preferences. For example, some people did not enjoy crowded places they preferred a quiet place. Staff told us this was always considered when exploring activities for people to enjoy.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and well being. The provider shared some examples of how people made choices for example to go on holiday with staff support. In another case a person had moved from shared accommodation to their own home, which had a significant impact on their life. We saw white boards being used to plan meals and household tasks which helped people to be more independent and supported them if they had some memory issues. People were able to use different communication systems to make choices for example, use of pictures or objects of references. Staff promoted choices and independence. For example, a person had obtained a wheelchair to use in the community, this gave them greater independence and helped them with their mobility. Where people lacked the capacity to make decisions about choice a best interest decision was made. This was documented in people’s care plans.

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. We observed staff interacting with people on our visits. Staff understood people’s needs and anticipated what may cause a person distress. For example, when visiting the home, it was vital to ensure that visitors, if unexpected, kept space from people as their presence may cause some anxiety. We asked staff what they would do in a medical emergency, and they responded appropriately for example by calling the emergency services if required. The provider had an emergency protocol in place.

The provider cared about and promoted the well being of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff told us they were happy to work for the organisation and felt they were making a difference to people using the service. Staff said they could progress in the organisation if they wanted. They also told us they had some flexibility within their working hours, and this helped them to maintain a good work life balance.