Diversicare Limited

Updated 9 February 2024

The inspection

We carried out this performance review and assessment under Section 46 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act). We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements of the regulations associated with the Act and looked at the quality of the service to provide a rating.

Unlike our standard approach to assessing performance, we did not physically visit the office of the location. This is a new approach we have introduced to reviewing and assessing performance of some care at home providers. Instead of visiting the office location we use technology such as electronic file sharing and video or phone calls to engage with people using the service and staff.

Inspection team

An inspector and 1 Expert by Experience carried out this inspection. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 5 January 2024 and ended on 19 January 2024.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke to 3 people who use the service and 4 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 6 staff including support workers and the registered manager. The registered manager is also the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records including records relating to medicines, staff recruitment, care plans, risk assessments, accidents and incidents and safeguarding logs. We also looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service including audits and policies and procedures.

This performance review and assessment was carried out without a visit to the location’s office. We used technology such as video calls to enable us to engage with people using the service and staff, and electronic file sharing to enable us to review documentation.

Updated 9 February 2024

About the service

Diversicare Limited is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to people living in their own homes. The service provides support to older people and younger adults with a physical disability, sensory impairment, and dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 25 people using this service, including 7 people who were receiving personal care.

Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Record relating to medicines were not robust and we found shortfalls in staff recruitment processes. We made recommendations about this. There were enough skilled and experienced staff to ensure people were safe and risks to people were identified and managed. People felt safe using this service and staff were aware of their safeguarding responsibilities. We were assured infection control procedures were safe.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People’s needs were assessed prior to them starting to use this service and staff received the training they needed to deliver effective care and support. The provider worked well with other healthcare professionals to enhance people’s health and wellbeing.

People were treated well and their individuality was respected. People’s privacy, dignity and independence were respected and promoted. People and their relatives spoke highly of the service they received and of the staff team.

People received personalised care and care records were person-centred. The provider was following the Accessible Information Standard. There was a policy for responding to complaints and people were aware of the procedure. People told us they had no need to complain about this service.

The provider had a clear management structure. However, we did find shortfalls in some of the governance systems. We have made a recommendation about this. There was a positive and open culture and managers communicated well to the staff team. Staff spoke positively of the work they do and of the managers. The provider understood their responsibilities under the duty of candour.

For more details, please see the full report for Diversicare Limited which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 11 October 2022 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted due to Diversicare Limited being a newly registered service.

Recommendations

We made recommendations in relation to the management of medicines, staff recruitment and overall governance at this service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.