Altogether Care - Care At Home Limited Weymouth

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated Good.

This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

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 made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

People were supported from the outset to share their needs, preferences, and wishes before their care began. Once care was in place, this remained an ongoing conversation. This ensured that any changes in how people felt, what they needed, or how they wanted their support delivered were recognised and responded to promptly. People were actively involved in making decisions about their care and were listened to when expressing how they wanted support to be provided. Regular reviews helped make sure people’s care continued to feel right for them and met their current needs.

The service offered a range of flexible support options, including helping people return home safely after a hospital stay. For some individuals, this meant receiving support for a short period while they regained confidence and independence. People were involved in assessments before returning home, giving them the opportunity to discuss what would help them achieve the best possible outcomes.

Care plans were updated to reflect people’s changing needs, preferences, and health, ensuring support remained personalised and relevant.

Staff told us they had built positive relationships with people and knew them well. Staff were confident in using the service’s electronic care planning system to find important information, helping them provide care that was tailored to each individual.

The provider planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards.

The service used electronic systems effectively to oversee the day-to-day care provided to people. Feedback from people was positive; a person told us, “Staff are all very pleasant”, and another told us, “The office people and the carers are very lovely.” Staff used the electronic recording system when attending care visits and completed comprehensive notes which included required tasks as set in people’s care plans. The system alerted the office if any tasks were not completed, enabling timely oversight and follow-up. Records showed people were supported with food and drinks in line with their preferences and dietary needs. Daily notes were detailed and informative.

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. They made sure people only needed to tell their story once by sharing their assessment of needs when people moved between different services.

Management were familiar with what services were available to people for their health needs. Leaders contacted health and social care professionals regularly and supported people with referrals and ongoing health appointments. For example, referrals were made to district nurses to support skin integrity management.

When external stakeholders had input into people’s care, the provider documented this involvement.

There were effective communication systems between the staff team. The service used an electronic care planning system to promptly identify changes or concerns about people’s care. Staff were informed of any changes to people’s care plans via the electronic care planning system. This helped to ensure staff working at different times were supporting people in a consistent way using the most current information about their needs.

Relatives told us they were kept informed and felt involved in their family member’s care. Relatives and people told us staff supported people with referrals to doctors and other health professionals if required.

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support.

Some people were able to arrange their own healthcare appointments, and this independence was respected and supported. The provider told us staff assisted with healthcare arrangements when it was requested or a need was identified.

Staff told us they supported people to remain as independent as possible and in charge of their own care. A person told us, “They are supporting me in the way I want them to”. The service was responsive to people’s changing needs and communicated effectively with health and social care professionals.

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they met both clinical expectations and the expectations of people themselves.

An electronic care planning system was used to allocate staff to care visits, and update care records which allowed for effective monitoring of the care provided. Records confirmed staff monitored people’s care and treatment. For example, staff recorded people’s fluid and nutrition intake when required. Staff monitored people’s general wellbeing during visits and shared any issues with managers. Any concerns about people's health and welfare were reported to the management team. Where needed, a member of the management team would make referrals to health care professionals.

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment.

Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and their need to assume people had capacity to make their own decisions, and that consent should be sought prior to carrying out care. A staff member said, “I follow care plans and gain consent by continually include the clients in every decision around their care, for example what they would like to eat, wear for the day to how they would like their personal care to be done.”

Records showed when a person might lack capacity to make specific decisions, assessments had been carried out in line with legislation. Best-interest decisions involved the person, their representatives, and relevant professionals. Feedback we received confirmed good practice, with people feeling included in decisions about their care. When asked, people confirmed consent was always sort.