Utopia Care Limited - Thurrock Branch

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

Safe – this means we looked for evidence that people were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people were safe and protected from avoidable harm.

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 service had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. Staff listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported incidents. The registered manager identified lessons learnt following accidents, incidents and complaints and care plans and risk assessments were updated accordingly, to ensure staff had up to date guidance to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

Management shared learning with staff following incidents, accidents, complaints and safeguarding so that the service could continually improve and develop positive outcomes for people. Information was shared with staff through supervisions and meetings. The registered manager told us, “I have various WhatsApp groups which I use daily to ensure everyone gets the information they need instantly.” A member of staff told us, “The manager keeps us informed of any changes to a person’s care plan or if there is anything else we need to know about.”

The service worked with people and healthcare partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety was managed or monitored. They made sure there was continuity of care, including when people moved between different services. The registered manager told us, “A meeting takes place to carry out a full assessment before we commence a support package to determine if we are able to support the individual or not. We also look at what additional training our staff may need to ensure the person receives the best support. We get health professionals involved in the initial assessment too. We have also introduced a new initial assessment checklist before we commence a new package.”

Staff told us they read through the care plans to ensure they had all the information they needed to provide support safely. A relative told us, “The manager was very good. They visited the house and went through everything. The discussion was very in depth and included times [relative] eats and hobbies etc. They did this for my other [relative] too, which was only very recently.” Another relative told us, “I was given an information pack, there is one in [relative’s] kitchen and all important information and phone numbers and so on is in the care plan.”

The service worked with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and the best way to achieve that. Staff concentrated on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect. Staff understood how to recognise the signs of abuse and could describe the actions they would take to safeguard people including informing other agencies if they were concerned about action being taken. A staff member told us, “I would report to my manager, and I would escalate to the Local authority if I needed to.”

A relative told us, “We feel100% safe. [Relative] has many needs that need to be looked after. They have complex needs due to their dementia. I trust the staff completely as they know how to deal with [relative]. I feel I can switch off and stop worrying about [relative] as the staff are so competent.”

The service worked with people to understand and manage risks by thinking holistically. Staff provided care to meet people’s needs that was safe, supportive and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them. Risks to people had been assessed and risk assessments had been put in place to help mitigate these. Risks included areas such as supporting people with physical healthcare needs, use of mobility equipment and with personal care. Staff knew the risks to people well and told us they were kept up to date if there had been any changes to risk assessments. Staff told us they always read the care plan and checked the care planning application, they used on their phone, to see if there had been any changes to the care package. A relative told us, “[Relative] uses a rotunda which the staff use to help [relative] stand. The staff use it very competently.” Another relative told us, “The staff are well trained they know how to deal with [relative’s] medical needs, especially how to support a person with dementia.”

People received personal care and support in their own homes. The service detected and controlled potential risks in the environment. They made sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care. The registered manager told us, ''We involve families and health professionals when formulating and reviewing the care plans and work closely with them on a regular basis.'' Risk assessments had been completed to provide staff with guidance on how to keep people safe and minimise risks. For example, there was a risk assessment in place describing risks to people's home environment.

The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. Staff worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs. The registered manager had processes in place to ensure all staff received an extensive induction and staff we spoke to confirmed this. Appropriate checks were in place before staff started work including providing full work histories, references and a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. DBS provide information including details about convictions and cautions held on the Police National Computer. The information helps employers make safer recruitment decisions. The registered manager had implemented a new staff file audit process which ensured that all employee records were regularly reviewed, up to date and contained all the necessary information.

There was enough staff available to provide safe and consistent care to people safely. A relative told us, “There has been the odd occasion when staff have been a bit late, but due to traffic or something. They stay for the full amount of time and sometimes longer. A few days ago, I asked the district nurse to visit, so the staff hung around for the nurse to arrive, longer than they should have stayed.”

A person told us, “They are always there within the time slot. I have absolute faith that if there was an issue they would call me.”

We did not look at Infection prevention and control during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Safe.

The service made sure that medicines and treatments were safe and met people’s needs, capacities and preferences. Staff involved people in planning, including when changes happened. The registered manager told us, "Staff did not support people with medicines until they had completed the required training, and medicine competency assessments were completed." Medicine competency assessments were seen on staff files. People had care plans and risk assessments in place which detailed what medicines they were prescribed and how they liked to be supported. The registered manager completed regular audits, and the care coordinator completed daily checks to ensure safe management of medicines. There was a robust system in place to identify any shortfalls and to ensure people received their medicines safely.