Background to this inspection
Updated
11 January 2020
The inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) 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 Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection team consisted of two inspectors.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
The service had a manager, who was also the provider, who was registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service three working days’ notice. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
The inspection started on the 21 November 2019 when we made calls to people who used the service. We visited the office site on the 22 November 2019 and visits to people’s homes took place on 25 November 2019. We also sent emails to staff and healthcare professionals. The inspection ended on 25 November 2019.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We also reviewed information that we held about the service such as notifications. These are events that happen in the service that the provider is required to tell us about. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with five people who used the service and eight relatives. We spoke with the registered manager and the designated training officer. We also received feedback from 19 care staff. We obtained consent from one person to visit them in their own homes. We reviewed records of accidents, incidents, compliments and complaints, staff recruitment, training and support as well as audits and quality assurance reports.
After the inspection
We continued to receive further information from the service. We received information from two healthcare professionals.
Updated
11 January 2020
About the service
Tamar Care Services is a domiciliary care service that provides care and support to people living in their own homes in the community. The service mainly provides personal care for people in short visits at key times of the day to help people get up in the morning, go to bed at night and support with meals.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.
When we inspected the service was providing the regulated activity, personal care, to approximately 70 people.
People’s experience of using this service
People, their relatives and professionals told us care was delivered in a safe way. Staff provided care for people in a compassionate and respectful manner. People received a reliable service, had agreed the times of their visits and received regular updates on any changes. One relative said; “Overall, I am happy with the service provided and channels of communication.”
People were supported by a stable staff team who had the skills and knowledge to meet their needs. They told us they received their medicines on time and staff understood and met their needs. Staff spoke passionately about the people they supported and were clearly committed to providing a responsive and caring service in line with people’s wishes.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
Assessments were carried out before people used the service to identify any risks to the person and to the staff supporting them. Care plans were personalised to the individual and recorded details about each person’s specific needs and wishes. These were kept under regular review and updated as people’s needs changed.
People were supported to access healthcare services, staff recognised changes in people's health, and sought professional advice appropriately. The service worked collaboratively with healthcare professionals to access training and advice which helped ensure people’s health needs were met.
There was a positive culture in the service and management and staff were committed to ensuring people received a good service. Staff told us they were well supported and had a good working relationship with each other and the management team. Staff had received appropriate training and support to enable them to carry out their role safely.
People, their relatives and staff told us management were approachable and they listened to them when they had any concerns or ideas. All feedback was used to make continuous improvements to the service.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was Good. (Report published on 16 June 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.