Advantage Healthcare West Midlands

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question Good. At this assessment the rating has remained Good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

We saw evidence people were treated with kindness, compassion and respect. Feedback from relatives consistently highlighted the caring nature of frontline staff, with many describing care professionals as dedicated, compassionate and committed to providing good-quality care.

Families told us they felt reassured care was delivered by staff who knew people well, understood their individual needs and took the time to build positive relationships. We saw examples of staff developing strong bonds with people, particularly children and those with complex needs, which helped promote trust, confidence and positive experiences of care. One relative told us, ‘I feel safe and relaxed with them supporting [Person], if I didn’t they would be gone’.

The provider promoted a person-centred approach, with care tailored to individual communication needs, preferences and routines. We also saw examples of staff supporting people and families in a sensitive and respectful manner during assessments and when commencing new care packages.

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

backgrounds and protected characteristics.

The provider demonstrated a person-centred approach and was committed to treating people and children as individuals. Assessments, care plans and risk assessments were tailored to people's specific needs, preferences and routines, helping staff understand what was important to each person and how they wished to be supported. One person told us, ‘They don’t rush me at all, they are kind and caring’.

We saw a strong focus on communication and inclusion. Children were actively involved in their care through the use of the “Little Blue Book”, whilst translation services and communication tools were available to support people with different language and communication needs. Information could be adapted to meet individual requirements, helping people to understand and participate in decisions about their care.

Feedback from families highlighted positive examples of staff taking time to build meaningful relationships and adapting their approach to meet individual needs. We saw evidence of personalised support resulting in increased trust, confidence and engagement from people using the service.

The provider also recognised the importance of involving families and those important to people in care planning and reviews, ensuring care was delivered in a way that reflected people's wishes, preferences and individual circumstances.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

The provider promoted people's independence, choice and control by involving them, and where appropriate their families, in decisions about their care and support. Care plans were developed around individual needs, preferences and routines, helping to ensure care was delivered in a way that reflected what mattered most to the person.

There was a strong focus on enabling participation in decision-making. Children were supported to express their views, and staff were trained to use communication tools to effectively communicate.

Staff were encouraged to work in a person-centred way and adapt support to meet people's individual goals and preferences. Feedback from relatives demonstrated that people were supported by staff who knew them well, understood their wishes and promoted choice wherever possible.

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

The provider had arrangements in place to respond to people's changing and urgent needs. People had access to support from care professionals, nurses, case managers and management teams, with clear escalation processes available when concerns were identified.

An effective on-call system operated outside of normal office hours and included scheduler, management, nursing and senior management support. In addition, the provider had a dedicated Rapid Response Team consisting of specially trained staff who could support people with complex needs and respond to changes in care requirements.

There was evidence that concerns were acted upon appropriately. Incidents, medication errors and concerns were investigated, with reactive supervision and additional support provided where required. Management demonstrated a willingness to review concerns and take action to reduce the risk of recurrence.

Feedback from relatives indicated the provider’s responsiveness had improved in recent months, particularly in relation to leadership and communication. However, some families reported staff turnover and changes in management had occasionally impacted on the continuity of care and responsiveness.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

The provider demonstrated a strong commitment to staff wellbeing and engagement. Staff had access to a range of support initiatives, including health and wellbeing application, which provided wellbeing, health and counselling support. The organisation also recognised and celebrated staff achievements through initiatives such as Carer of the Month, recognition awards and appreciation schemes One staff member told us, ‘I feel encouraged to raise concerns and generally treated respectfully within the workplace’.

There was evidence of investment in staff development through structured inductions, mandatory training, bespoke clinical training and competency assessments. Staff were supported by nurses, managers and senior leaders, with regular team meetings providing opportunities for communication, learning and engagement.

The provider had also introduced several initiatives to improve staff experience, including referral schemes, staff feedback programmes and plans to further develop staff forums and champion roles. Feedback systems such as “You Said, We Did” demonstrated that staff views were actively sought and considered.

Whilst staff support arrangements were positive, opportunities existed to strengthen the recording of supervision outcomes and follow-up actions to provide greater assurance that development needs and performance improvement actions were consistently monitored and completed.