Home Care

Updated 30 May 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on the 2 May 2018. The inspection was carried out by one inspector. We gave the provider two days’ notice of the inspection as we needed to make sure the registered manager would be available to assist with the inspection.

Before the inspection we looked at all the information we had about the service. This information included statutory notifications that the provider had sent to CQC. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. The provider had also completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give us some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used this information to help inform our inspection planning.

On the day of the inspection we visited the office and spoke with the registered manager, the director of adult social care, the head of direct care, the head of quality assurance and complaints and three members of staff. We looked at the care records of three people who used the service, staff training and recruitment records and records relating to the management of the service. We also visited three people at their homes to gain their and their relatives views about the service.

Updated 30 May 2018

This inspection took place on the 2 May 2018. We gave the provider two days’ notice of the inspection as we needed to make sure the registered manager would be available. Home Care provides a reablement service to people living in their own homes. It is a short term programme to promote people’s independence and offers rehabilitation for up to six weeks following an illness, injury or admission into hospital. It provides a service mainly to older adults. At the time of this inspection 23 people were using the service.

At our last comprehensive inspection of the service on 22 and 24 November 2016 we found breaches of CQC regulations because people’s medicines records were not always completed appropriately by staff and the service did not have effective systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service that people received. At this inspection we found that action had been taken to make sure people’s medicines records were completed by staff in line with the provider’s medicines policy and the systems for monitoring the quality and safety of the service were operating effectively.

The service had a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Medicines were managed appropriately and people received their medicines as prescribed by health care professionals. The service had safeguarding procedures in place and staff had a clear understanding of these procedures. Appropriate recruitment checks took place before staff started work. There was enough staff on duty to meet people’s needs. Risks to people were assessed to ensure their needs were safely met. Staff were aware of the steps they needed to take to reduce the risk of the spread of infections.

People’s care and support needs were assessed before they started using the service. Staff had received training relevant to people’s needs. Where required, people were supported to maintain a balanced diet. People had access to a GP and other health care professionals when they needed them. Staff were aware of the importance of seeking consent and demonstrated an understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and how it applied to the support they gave people to make decisions.

People and their relatives had been consulted about their care and support needs. They were provided with appropriate information about the service. This ensured they were aware of the standard of care they should expect. People could understand information in the current written format provided to them; however information was available in different formats when it was required. Staff treated people in a caring, respectful and dignified manner. People knew about the provider’s complaints procedure and said they would tell staff or the registered manager if they were unhappy or wanted to make a complaint. Staff had received training on equality and diversity. Staff said they would support people according to their needs.

The provider took people’s views about the service into account through satisfaction surveys. They carried out quality assurance checks to make sure people were supported in line with their care plans. Staff said they enjoyed working at the service and they received good support from the registered manager and office staff. There was an out of hours on call system in operation that ensured management support and advice was always available for staff when they needed it.