Hales Group Limited - Ipswich

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.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained 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.

The registered manager told us people’s needs were assessed when they started to use the service, and these were used to inform care plans and risk assessments. The assessments were undertaken with input from the person and their representatives, where appropriate.

A person’s representative told us, prior to the person using the service, a member of the management team visited them in their home and spoke with them about their needs and preferences. A person’s relative said, “My [family member] and I had a meeting at [their] residence before any care began, and I supplied them with a care plan from [family member’s] previous care agency.We went through the plan day by day and [family member] agreed to the care that was suggested to be put into place.”

People and relatives told us they felt they had been consulted about the care received and we saw records of reviews where people were asked for their input.

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.

People and their representatives, where appropriate, were involved in the planning of their care, this was evident in care reviews and the registered manager’s monitoring systems.

People’s records included the support people required with their food and drink, however, a person’s care plan had not been updated throughout when their needs had changed. People told us, where required, they received the support they needed with their dietary needs. One person said, “Yes, I do receive some help with my meals. It’s usually morning and lunchtime and then they will prepare a snack for me. Sometimes when I am poorly, I might need some help to eat, and they will do that for me.” Another person said, “My meals are all microwavable, they do help me to heat that up.” A relative told us how they had requested the care workers monitor what their family member had to drink, “We've asked them to encourage [family member] and not just leave it there but to actively encourage [family member] to drink while they're there and they've been monitoring that.”

Prior to our assessment we had been made aware of a concern relating to care worker’s not being knowledgeable how to prepare traditional British food which had impacted on a person’s nutritional needs. However, this was in the process of being addressed. We saw care workers were provided with written guidance on how to prepare food people may request, such as different ways to cook an egg. A person’s comments received by the service stated improvements had been made after they had raised concerns about the cooking of eggs.

Daily notes demonstrated people were supported in line with their care plan including observing a person eat their meal, to reduce risks. We also saw notes which showed, with the person’s consent, out of date food was checked and discarded. Care workers had received training in nutrition and hydration.

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.

People’s care plans included an ‘about me’ document which identified important information about people, such as their family and background. The registered manager told us this could be provided, for example if a person needed to be admitted to hospital, as well as their ‘bio’ which included information of risks such as if the person had any allergies, required a diabetic diet or if they wished to be resuscitated and where this document was kept.

The registered manager told us they had good working relationships with other professionals involved in people’s care, and referrals were made as required to other professionals, with people’s consent.

The registered manager told us the care team worked well together. This was confirmed by feedback received from care workers. A care worker said, “Everyone works together to provide good care, and I’m proud to be part of the service."

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.

People told us if they needed support to access health care support this would be provided. One person said, “If I needed any help with appointments, I’m sure they would give it.” Another person told us, “If I was ill, they would call an ambulance for me, I’m sure. Some will come to the hospital with me.”

A person’s relative told us, “They can tell when [family member] is not [their] self. They would be able to recognise the signs.” Another relative said, “[Family member] has had a few UTI’s…. They will always tell me.” Another relative said, “The other night they called 111 for advice and [care worker] stayed with [family member] until they've got back to [care worker] and told me straight away rather than the following morning so I thought that was good.”

People’s care records included their health conditions, they varied in quality, some identified how the conditions affected the person, including diabetes, but some only detailed some of their conditions. The registered manager assured us this would be addressed, and work was underway to review and update care plans. A person told us, “They understand all of my health care needs, they’ve had to learn around me."

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.

The service had systems in place to monitor the service people received. This included audits, care reviews and spot checks on care workers. The registered manager’s audits included speaking with people about the service they received. Plans were in place to undertake ‘are we caring’ calls to people, we saw a recent telephone call made to a person regarding their satisfaction which evidenced improvements were being made. There was an improvement plan in place for the service which included reviewing and updating people’s care plans and implementing ‘are we caring’ calls.

Where shortfalls were identified lessons were learned and disseminated to care workers to reduce future risks.

We received mixed feedback from people’s relatives about if they were asked for feedback about the service. One relative said, “We’ve had questionnaires come through from head office.” Another relative said, “No feedback has been given, they’ve not asked.” Satisfaction surveys were requested and we saw ‘you said, we did’ records which were shared with people which identified their views were valued and used to improve the service.

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

People’s capacity to make their own decisions was assessed and documented. People had signed documents to show they consented to the care they received. Where people required support to consent and make decisions and a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) was in place, consent had been given by them. The service had requested documentation from the LPA to ensure they were authorised to consent and make decisions on people’s behalf.

A person told us, “They don’t need to ask for consent every time, we know each other, and we chat."