Sylvian Care Farnham

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• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs.

This is the first assessment for this newly registered- amend as required service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

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 were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs. Comments from people and relatives included, “I was involved in the care planning from the start, we did it together and they review this” and “They take time to understand his preferences, including things that are important to him, such as how he likes certain tasks completed.”

People received care that was person‑centred and reflective of their individual routines, preferences, communication needs and life histories. Care plans were detailed and written in an accessible, first‑person style, setting out what mattered to people and how they wanted to be supported. The provider told us, “Our care plans, they are very personalised because I want whoever is reading the care plan to know that person. When you read the care plan, I want you to know that client.”

Staff demonstrated a good understanding of people’s emotional needs, including the importance of reassurance, familiar routines and predictability. This helped staff provide consistent and compassionate care that met people’s individual needs.

The provider understood the diverse health and care needs of people and their local communities, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity. One relative told us, “[Family member] sees the same people all the time, she gets a rota, so she knows who is coming.” Another said, “They often ask [family member] if he needs more care or less care and leave an impression that they are always available in case [family member] needs to go somewhere.”

A relative fed back to the service, ‘[Registered manager] has proved extremely helpful in fitting us into their schedule at short notice, going out of his way to arrange times most suitable for us.’

People with a range of care needs were supported by the service. Staff worked closely with visiting health and social care professionals to ensure support was tailored and met people’s individual needs. This included working with specialists such as speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, the local hospice, GP and district nurses. The provider also told us they would chase referrals where there had been a delay in the response. This joint working helped ensure people received coordinated care and appropriate support in line with their assessed needs.

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs. Relatives’ comments included, “They contact me if anything is changing. They let me know if there is any change in the care. They make you aware straight away” and “The communication from the office is first class.”

The provider stated in their PIR, ‘During the initial face-to-face assessment, which we carry out with the service user and, where appropriate, their close family members or representatives, we ask specific questions about how they prefer to receive information and communicate. This includes identifying whether they require written information in large print, easy-read formats, Braille, or in an alternative language. We also check if they use any communication aids, such as hearing loops, magnifiers, or communication boards, to ensure our support is fully accessible.’

We found this to be the case by speaking to people and reviewing care plans. There was detailed information for staff around how best to communicate with people. One member of staff said, “I would read the communication care plan, if a person wasn’t able to verbally speak, I also read body language.”

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result.

Leaders gathered feedback from people and relatives through regular ‘check ins’ and surveys. This gave people an opportunity to share their views and experiences of the care and support they received. One person told us, “They have asked me for feedback.” A relative told us, “We also have access to [providers care system] which is their communication system, which again is excellent. That's a good platform where all the communication, medication, and notes are logged.”

Staff were also encouraged to share their views through staff surveys. We saw evidence that feedback was reviewed and used to inform actions and improvements. This demonstrated that leaders listened to feedback from people using the service and staff and used this to support continuous improvement.
 

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it. One relative said, “If I need to change the call its absolutely fine if [family member] has an appointment or is doing something.”

Staff and leaders ensured that people received timely support and that any changes in people’s needs were responded to appropriately. We found no evidence of delays, barriers or inequality in people’s access to care. This helped ensure people received the support they needed, when they needed it. The provider told us, “Every time when we do an assessment, we always ask about the medication and the time, if we know it's a client that has diabetes medication, we need to leave around 5 hours for the next medication to be taken. We will plan the rota around this.”

Leaders also ensured that staff had access to the leadership team out of hours. The registered manager told us, “We do have the out of office hours support. We have the on call. If we are not in the office, the landline is redirected on our mobile phone, and the clients are aware of this as well."
 

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

The provider had an equality and diversity policy in place, which set out their commitment to promoting fairness, inclusion and respect for people and staff. Equality and diversity were also covered as part of staff induction training. This helped ensure staff understood their responsibilities in relation to respecting people’s protected characteristics and supporting inclusive, person‑centred care.

People were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life.

The provider supported people to plan for future care needs, including end‑of‑life care. End‑of‑life training was available for staff, and some staff had completed this training, which helped build knowledge and confidence in supporting people sensitively and appropriately. Leaders also had links with the local hospice for guidance and support where people have life limiting health conditions.

For people who were not at the end of their life, staff offered opportunities to discuss future care wishes. These discussions were documented within care records, which helped ensure people had time to make informed decisions about their future care.