Archived: Chameleon Care (Dover)

Updated 20 February 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. Not everyone using Chameleon Care (Dover) receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with 'personal care'; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. A senior manager was in day to day charge of the service and assisted us throughout this inspection.

Notice of inspection

We gave a short period notice of the inspection because we wanted to gather feedback from people. We asked the provider to seek permission from people using the service to share their contact details with us, so we could make telephone calls before we visited the office.

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, professionals who work with the service and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We spoke to five people and four relatives who used the service by telephone before we visited the office. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We visited the office location on the 5 December 2019. We spoke to the senior manager, assistant manager, administrator and two carers. We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and information around making complaints. We spoke with two carers, one person and one relative. We received feedback from three healthcare professionals.

Updated 20 February 2020

About the service

Chameleon Care is a domiciliary care agency which provides personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of the inspection 28 people were receiving a personal care service. Some people had physical disabilities and a variety of health needs.

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

Some people fed back their calls were sometimes later than expected but where possible they were contacted by the service to keep them informed. Nobody told us their calls were missed. New staff were recruited safely. We did note some small gaps in two staff members employment history had not been recorded. The senior manager took action during the inspection to resolve this. People did not raise any concerns about their safety and were supported to remain safe. Staff understood how to raise any safeguarding concerns. Medicines were managed safely, and people were assessed to determine the support they required to take their medicines.

The service maintained good contact with other health care professionals and peoples care plans contained information, so carers could support health needs. People were supported by carers who were trained to have the right skills and knowledge. Carers told us they received enough training and support to carry out their roles. Where needed, people were supported by carers with their food and drink. 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. Before people received a service, their needs were assessed, and any risks were identified. People were assessed so any changes could be made to their care package as required

People and their relatives fed back positively about the carers and how they were treated. They told us they were treated with dignity and respect. People received the care and support needed, in the way they wanted. Care plans were detailed and person specific. Complaints were managed appropriately,

Staff understood their roles and the values of the organisation. Managers continued to keep their skills and knowledge up to date and understood relevant legislation and guidance. People, staff and other individuals were asked for feedback, so the service could improve,

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating inspection for this service was good.

Why we inspected

This was a planned scheduled inspection.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.