Amaiva Homecare Services

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

Well-led – this means we looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture.This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated good.This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 79 (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 had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

The registered manager was invested in developing a diverse care team that was confident and well trained in delivering a high standard of care and wanted to continue building good working relationships with the community teams and other partner services they worked with. They welcomed feedback from others and looked to make continual improvements considering the views and needs of people they supported and staff who worked with them. Staff meetings evidenced that varied topics were discussed and shared with the team, and staff confirmed they felt listened to and valued when communicating with the registered manager. There was a collaborative approach in ensuring that people received the best possible care and support. Staff spoken with were equally enthusiastic about the service developing and wanted to continue to offer the highest standards of care to those they supported.

The provider had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They always did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

The registered manager led the service with an openness and approachability which was obvious to see. We observed them interacting positively with staff who came into the office and overheard them speaking to relatives on the phone. They demonstrated a thorough understanding of situations, people’s healthcare needs, and empathy when communicating with families and discussing sensitive subjects. Relatives feedback about the service was extremely complimentary with comments including, “Their service and professionalism are outstanding” and “The standard of care has been consistently excellent.”Staff gave numerous positive comments about the leadership and company standards, telling us of the support they received from the registered manager which started when they first joined the service and remained throughout their employment. A staff member told us, “The registered manager is lovely, very supportive, really helps out and I can go to them about anything.” The registered manager confirmed they helped staff in assisting people on calls and helped cover sickness and annual leave as they preferred not to use any agency staff, thus keeping continuity of care for those they supported. They displayed and demonstrated the values of a good work ethic which they promoted to others in the team, giving them credibility and experience to lead with confidence. A member of staff told us the registered manager shadowed shifts with them until they felt confident enough to work alone saying, “When I started, I was not really sure. They showed me everything I needed to know. They gave me lots of encouragement.” The registered manager encouraged an inclusive culture, for example, they supported staff to have flexible working hours so enabling a positive work life balance whilst also meeting the needs of the business in delivering calls and support to people at varying times. Staff spoke positively about the service, confirming they had chances to offer feedback and opinions, and told us they felt valued and appreciated by managers, with a staff member saying, “This is probably one of the best companies I have worked for, they don’t talk down to you, they are accommodating, helpful and supportive, open to my suggestions, I feel valued and would say if I didn’t.” The registered manager told us, “We always have the ethos of making everyday lives better, go in and make people smile and have a positive day, give truly person-centred care” and they made sure everyone in the staff team was equipped with the training, confidence and skills to deliver care in line with these principles. Professional feedback confirmed this with one person saying, “Every member of the Amaiva team I have met has demonstrated kindness, compassion and professionalism.”

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff told us they received regular supervision and felt able to approach the managers at any time if they had any queries or concerns. Staff were encouraged by the registered manager to highlight anything they were worried about, or events that happened, and they could access a manager out of hours via an on-call system for guidance and advice. Staff told us they felt listened to and able to speak freely, with their views and comments being welcomed and valued. Managers were always accessible and were viewed as approachable and professional. Surveys were sent out to staff, people and relatives inviting feedback on the services provided. The registered manager told us they acted upon anything highlighted as a concern, for example staff fed back that it was hard to search for policies and specific information when they needed it, so they changedcompanies to a new digital system that made that process easier.Regular staff meetings were held, with varied agenda’s, giving chances for staff to offer feedback and make suggestions

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them.

The service operated a transparent and inclusive recruitment procedure where people were considered on their skills and personality. Efforts were made to ensure the best staff were recruited with a skill mix and experience that would benefit people being supported and contribute to developing a workforce that could grow and support a variety of care needs. A diverse team of staff were in place at Amaiva Homecare Services with both male and female carers, and different nationalities and lifestyles being employed. Development opportunities and progression were open to all who expressed an interest, with regular refresher training sessions held to support the e-learning that staff completed. Staff told us they felt confident they could contribute ideas and that their input was valued by the management, with one saying, “The team is very good, everyone works well together”.The registered manager ensured the service had access to advice on employment law and worker’s rights and had just changed to a new HR company who would support with this and keep them up to date with current guidelines and processes, enabling staff to be treated fairly in any disputes or disagreements. They told us, “All are treated fairly, the same interview process, we don’t have any time for workplace bullying, we have no history of that, we encourage whistleblowing if needed.”

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

There were regular audits completed by the registered manager to monitor and maintain the quality of service being delivered to people and the registered manager explained that as they are quite a small service any patterns in accidents and incidents are easily identified when information is pulled together. Both managers completed weekly governance reviews on a Monday for the previous 7 days and immediately addressed anything urgent that came to light. Where required, extra tasks for people would be added on the digital system for staff to be immediately aware of. At times information was verbally communicated to staff depending on the urgency of the situation. This was confirmed with a staff member telling us, “Any learning or actions following an incident are communicated through updated care plans, revised risk assessments and direct communication from managers.” We did find occasional details in care plans that were unclear and discussed this with the registered manager. They recognised that they could make minor improvements and demonstrated a proactive approach in their response.

The provider clearly understood and carried out their duty to collaborate and worked in partnership, and services worked seamlessly for people. They always shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

The registered manager confirmed they liaised with partner services and worked hard to establish good links within the community with other healthcare professionals. They understood the processes to follow if they required any support from partners or needed to flag any concerns they may have identified with people’s current health needs. Staff acted quickly which enabled people to have access to required care and treatment without delay. Professional feedback was excellent with a professional telling us, “There are occasions when joint visits are required, often at short notice. Amaiva has consistently gone out of its way to accommodate these requests and make carers available whenever possible. Their flexibility, professionalism and commitment to delivering high quality care are evident throughout our partnership working.” The service was committed to helping everyone access and obtain the correct levels of support from themselves and other healthcare partners, for example, when supporting people living with dementia staff had contacted healthcare professionals just to confirm that a scheduled community visit had taken place. This demonstrated staff maintained a continual interest in people and ensured those they cared for received all the support they needed. Professionals stated they valued the strong working partnership they had developed with the registered manager and their team of staff with one saying,” Their dedication, professionalism and compassionate approach make them an invaluable partner in delivering the highest standard of care to our shared patients.” The service emphasized the importance of communication and the sharing of information as quickly and smoothly as possible with all staff and relevant parties, so ensuring the standards of care that people received were always current, and people had opportunities to achieve the best possible outcomes. The registered manager told us they worked with a variety of partners and supporting systems, for example with people receiving NHS continuing health care funding and established good working relationships with people’s social workers. This meant that continued patterns of care were promoted, and that delivery of care operated smoothly for everyone involved. They worked hard to be accessible to others and adapted their working patterns to accommodate people’s needs and ensure all the necessary support was in place from everyone concerned, which enabled positive outcomes for people and their families.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research.

The registered manager confirmed they kept their own professional development up to date via local forums and additional training; they are currently completing their level 7 qualification to improve their managerial skills. Training and developing skills were encouraged within the care team with staff confirming they had opportunity for growth and development; one staff said, “I have been encouraged and fully supported to do my level 3 in adult care which I have almost completed.” The registered manager was enthusiastic about developing the business and growing their reputation for good quality care; they told us, “I like being hands on, I want it to grow but, in a manner, to be really personable to each client. For us I want it to be that we can help more people and not lose that personal element to it.” They added, “We want all clients to feel safe, secure, and looked after.” One of the aims the registered manager had over the next few years was to look at developing a care home which would be linked to their homecare business and support people when they became unable to safely remain in their own home environment. They told us, “Eventually we would like to open a dementia home to run alongside, a lot of our clients have dementia and it would be nice to move them across, to keep continuity of care, but the same staff would still visit, and we would have the ability to keep everything similar for them.”