Compassion First Home Care

On this page

• 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 service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

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 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.

People and relatives were involved in day-to-day decisions about their care and support. If people needed changes, they knew who to go to and how to achieve this. People’s care plans demonstrated staff had considered people’s individual preferences and used this information to complete a personalised care plan for staff to follow. Some elements of people’s care plans would benefit from further review to ensure they remained updated. Staff felt the care plans and information they had helped them provide the right care. From staff conversations, they knew the support people needed.

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.

Relatives confirmed they were involved and played an important role in caring for their family member and being the link where necessary to the agency. Records showed people were supported to obtain support and assistance from other health professionals, such as district nurses, GPs and equipment suppliers.

The registered manager ensured people received consistency in their care, this reduced risks of people experiencing anxiety from unfamiliar faces. Staff said they were a stable and consistent staff team that provided consistent care and good communication links that kept them updated. People knew staff by name and people were confident with staff who cared for them.

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs.

People and relatives were satisfied with the information they had around care plans and relatives were happy they were kept updated of any changes. People’s sensory information was recorded such as whether people had glasses or hearing aids. The provider gave people a list in advance of their care calls and allocated staff members, so they knew who was coming. If people had any concerns outside office hours, there was an on-call service people could reach out to for assistance.

The registered manager said people had written information or they could have information sent to them electronically. In the office there was a range of publications about specific health conditions, advice or support networks. If people needed any help, paper booklets could be given to people about specific organisations. Those organisations would have information available in other formats to support people’s individual communication requirements.

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

No one we spoke with had reason to make a complaint because they were satisfied with the service provided. Some relatives told us they had asked for some minor changes to how their care was provided and these changes were made without delay. People and relatives were confident their feedback was heard and acted upon. Systems and processes were in place to seek people’s voice. Senior staff and the registered manager all provided care to people which gave people and relatives opportunity to raise or share feedback.

The provider made sure people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it.

The management and staff team understood the diverse needs of people they supported and delivered care that supported people’s individual choice. Staff understood people’s needs and worked together to ensure people could access the services they needed.

Relatives felt confident staff worked well with them to ensure their family members received the best possible care and achieved positive outcomes. Relatives told us staff treated them fairly and they had no concerns about discrimination at the service. One relative described to us how their family member on occasions could be hesitant when receiving support but said staff handled it very well. This relative said, “[Person] is very happy with the service, but they are resistant to care. We've managed to tailor their care to get the best care possible and [Person] is accepting it and staff are very careful with them.” Another relative gave us example, saying, “If he's having a bad day, he gets a bit tense. Staff can talk him down, explain what he needs to do. The carers (staff) can manage that.”

Staff and leaders were innovative in how they listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes. Staff and leaders actively used this information to provide exceptionally tailored care, support and treatment in response to this.

The provider and staff took action to ensure older people were not discriminated through the use of new technologies. The provider told us they recognised a need and were motivated to improve people’s lives, using available technologies, some in everyday life to help people stay connected. For example, the registered manager held individual and group sessions on a voluntary basis with people they supported, and some they did not. The registered manager said, “Some families buy their relatives’ electronic devices, phones and tablets but they don’t always help people set them up.” The registered manager said it left some people feeling isolated so offered a service to help people. One person said, “The manager helped set up my new television so I can now get online services like iplayer so I can see my favourite programmes.” Another person said with help, care staff set up their devices so they can now access the internet. People said these sessions were invaluable to help them remain connected with the outside world. Some of these sessions were in people’s own homes, others were held at private residential developments which helped the wider community. This work supported the provider’s ethos of supporting local people and also supported people who may have cognitive impairment to remain active, independent and connected to their communities.

Relatives told us reasonable adjustments had been made to support their family member in their own home to ensure they continued to remain as independent as possible. Staff told us they felt confident to recommend items of equipment that could help people, such as toilet seat risers and frames. Where people had difficulties accessing the appropriate treatment, staff supported people to ensure their needs were met. In one example, 1 person wanted to self-administer their medicines but occasionally forgot what they had taken. To continue to support this person with self-administration, staff spoke with the local pharmacy to put a person’s medicines in a box marked with days and times to remind them when and what they had taken.

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. At the time of our inspection, no one was receiving end of life care.

People received care in their own home, and this was their choice to remain in their own home for as long as practicable. At the time of our visit, no one received end of life care. Some people had documented their ‘ReSPECT’ which was a process that creates personalised recommendations for a person’s clinical care and treatment in a future emergency when they are unable to make or express choices. The registered manager told us they had previously supported people at end of life and staff worked closely with family and other health organisations, such as hospice care. This helped staff and the family to be involved and to help manage and support the person.