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Archived: Bridgewater Home Care

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Pemberton Business Centre, Richmond Hill, Wigan, Lancashire, WN5 8AA (01942) 215888

Provided and run by:
Bridgewater Home Care Ltd

Important: This service is now registered at a different address - see new profile

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Background to this inspection

Updated 27 January 2017

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

This announced inspection was undertaken on Thursday 30 June 2016. The inspection was announced 48 hours in advance so that management would be available at the office. The inspection team consisted of two adult social care inspectors from the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Before the inspection we reviewed any information we held about the service in the form of notifications received from the service. We also reviewed any safeguarding or whistleblowing information we had received, or any particular complaints about the service. We also liaised with the local quality assurance team based at Wigan Council, to see if they had any information to share with us.

At the time of the inspection the service provided care and support to 75 people within their own homes, predominantly in the Wigan area. The service also employed 35 members of staff. As part of the inspection we spoke with both registered managers, six people who used the service, four relatives and seven members of staff. The staff we spoke with consisted of care assistants, co-ordinators and field supervisors. We also visited four people in their own homes to speak with them and see how medication was handled.

We also spent time at the office looking at various documentation including four care plans, five staff personnel files, policies/procedures, staff training records and quality assurance documentation.

Overall inspection

Good

Updated 27 January 2017

This announced inspection was undertaken on Thursday 30 June 2016. We announced the inspection so that management would be available at the office. We last inspected the service on 4 July 2014, where the service was judged to be meeting all of the standards assessed at the time.

Bridgewater Home Care provides domiciliary care and support for people in their own homes, predominantly in the Wigan area. The head office is based at Pemberton Business Centre. At the time of the inspection there were 75 people using the service.

There was 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.

The people we spoke with told us they felt safe. The staff we spoke with had a good understanding about safeguarding and whistleblowing procedures and told us they wouldn’t hesitate to report concerns.

We found medication was handled safely and people received their medicines at the times they needed it. We looked at how medication was handled at two of the houses we visited. Staff told us they had received relevant training and management conducted regular competency checks, to ensure staff gave people their medication safely.

The service used a call monitoring system. This enabled management and staff in the office to check care was being provided to people at the correct time of day and in line with people’s care package requirements. Staff spoken with didn’t raise any concerns about staffing numbers, and felt there were enough to care for people safely.

We saw staff were recruited safely, with appropriate checks undertaken before staff began working with vulnerable adults.

The service had a training matrix to monitor the training requirements of staff. This showed us staff were trained in core subjects such as; safeguarding, moving and handling, medication and health and safety. Staff told us they received sufficient training to undertake their roles and said they felt supported.

People told us staff helped them to maintain good nutrition and hydration. People said staff always left them with something to eat and drink before leaving their house.

We saw staff received regular supervision as part of their on-going development. This provided an opportunity to discuss their workload, concerns and training opportunities. We saw records were maintained to show these took place.

The people we spoke with told us they were happy with the care provided by the service. People told us staff treated them with dignity and respect and promoted their independence as much as possible.

Each person who used the service had a care plan with a copy held at the office and in their own home. This provided staff with guidance about how to deliver care to people. The care plans we looked at were person centred and provided information about people’s likes, dislikes and life histories.

The service sent satisfaction surveys to people who used the service. This provided the opportunity for people to provide feedback about the service and recommend how the service could be improved.

There was a complaints procedure in place. We saw complaints were responded to appropriately. People were given a service user guide which detailed the process people could follow if they were unhappy with the service. We saw the service had received many compliments from people regarding the services they received.

People who used the service and staff told us they felt the service was well managed, Staff told us they felt well supported and would feel comfortable raising and discussing concerns.

We saw there were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service provided. This was done in the form of regular spot checks and observations of staff undertaking their work. We saw medication competency assessments were conducted. This provided management the opportunity to see how staff worked and make adjustments/suggestions to improve the service people received.