Mercury Care Services Ltd

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• 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.

Staff treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity.

People told us staff were kind and caring and respected their dignity.

A person said, “They [staff] are so nice and they’re so kind and they try to cheer me up. They’re really lovely” and “They’re really, really lovely and they even say they look forward to coming to my house.” Another person told us, “[Member of staff] is a very caring person.” One other person said, “I think they’re kind. They’ve never been mean to me.”

A person’s relative told us, “They are definitely kind. They’re very good. I’ve not got any complaints. They always seem to be happy and cheerful.”

A person also said, “When they [staff] wash me, they shut the door. And they put a towel round me and help me get dried.” Another person told us, “‘When we go in the bathroom, they [staff] close the door.” Another person’s relative said, “They shut the door to the room that [the person] is in every time.”

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

People’s care plans were individualised, and staff knew people’s needs and preferences well. Staff had received equality, diversity and human rights training.

A person told us, “When they come in, they always bring me a bottle of water because they know I’m going to ask for it.” Another person said, “Sometimes I get upset, so they [staff] sit me down and help me to calm down” and “They [staff] stayed with me longer after an unexpected hospital visit.” One other person told us, “When I need them to pick up medication, they pick it up.”

A person’s relative said, “Sometimes they [staff] wait for a paramedic or ambulance to arrive” and “They sit and talk to [mum/dad].”

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

People, and where appropriate, their relatives were involved in planning their care and making decisions about their support. Staff supported people to be as independent as possible.

A person told us, “I like to help them [staff] with the cooking when I can.” Another person said, “I do my own personal care where I can.” One other person told us, “I help to make meals, but staff keep an eye on me in case I fall”.

A person added, “They [staff] always ask me what I want” and a person’s relative said, “They [staff] always ask [her/him] if they want a cup of tea and a sandwich”.

Staff 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 registered manager told us, “We have staff who can attend to people immediately if necessary, and sometimes I go to support people myself if it is urgent.”

A person said, “I’m a bit unsteady on my feet and if I start swaying they [staff] grab a chair and help me to sit down.” Another person told us, “Staff assist me in getting round safely.” A person added that the service had allowed their carer to stay for additional time when they were taken into hospital. They said, “She [the registered manager] let the carer stay an extra hour to look after me.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff.

They had a staff reward scheme in place and celebrated staff birthdays and Christmas with staff. They paid staff a higher hourly rate for working on weekends.

The registered manager told us, “If staff have any wellbeing issues, we encourage them to speak with us. We discuss wellbeing in supervision. If they are feeling tired, we give them time off, so they can get enough rest.”

A member of staff said, “Management is good. Everything I have asked for has been met satisfactorily. I have not had any issues. They always respond, anytime.” Another member of staff told us, “When I call them [management] for anything they make sure they check it out and everything works just fine.” One other member of staff told us, “The management is good. So far, my requests have been granted. They are supportive.”