Archived: Genesis Recruitment Agency Limited- Domiciliary Care East London

Genesis Recruitment Agency Limited – Domiciliary Care East London is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care to older people and younger disabled adults in their own homes. 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. They were providing personal care to 67 people at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

At our last inspection in 2018 we found there had been breaches to regulations on safe care and treatment and good governance. At this inspection we found improvement had been made; specifically, people were supported with the management of their medicines, risk assessments were personalised and risks were mitigated for people and quality assurance systems had improved. However, some of the service’s documentation contained factual errors and were inaccurate. The provider was able to remedy most of these when we pointed it out to them.

There were safeguarding systems and processes in place. Staffing and recruitment were carried out with people's safety in mind. Staff maintained daily logs to record their ongoing work with people. 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.

People’s needs were assessed before they used the service. Staff were supported through induction, training, supervision and appraisal. People were supported appropriately to eat and drink where this was part of their care plans.

People were well treated and thought highly of staff. Policies and procedures at the service supported equality and human rights. People expressed their views and had input into their care. People's privacy and dignity were respected. People were encouraged to be independent.

People's care plans were personalised and contained details so staff could provide them with care in a way they preferred. People knew how to make complaints and the service responded appropriately when complaints were made. People at end of life could expect care that was fitting and in line with their wishes.

Staff understood infection control practices. Lessons were learned when things went wrong and the provider took appropriate steps to ensure that people were kept safe.

People thought highly of the managers of the service and that it was a good place to work. People and staff were able to feedback about the service and be involved with decision making about their care. The service worked with other agencies to the benefit of people using 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 and only previous rating for this service was requires improvement (published 24 October 2018).

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

Genesis Recruitment Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to older adults and younger disabled adults. On the day of our visit there were over 70 people using the service mainly living in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.

On the day of our inspection a registered manager was in place. 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.

During this inspection we found two breaches of regulations. This was because the service did not always follow correct procedures for the proper and safe management of medicines and risks were not always managed and mitigated for people using the service. We found quality monitoring systems in place were not always effective. You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of the full version of this report. Overall, we have rated the service as Requires Improvement. This is the first time the service has been rated Requires Improvement.

We have made two recommendations. This was because systems did not consistently monitor staff training and the service did not always follow best practice guidelines in relation to capacity assessments for specific decisions.

People were treated with dignity and respect by staff who knew and understood their needs. They were supported to remain independent by polite and caring staff.

People were supported to eat a balanced diet that met their individual dietary needs. They were supported to access healthcare services in order to maintain their health.

Staff were supported by means of a comprehensive induction, regular supervision and annual appraisals.

People told us they felt safe using the service. Safeguarding procedures were in place and staff knew how to identify and report safeguarding concerns. Staff knew how to deal with emergencies and report incidents and accidents.

People’s needs were assessed and care and support was planned and delivered in line with their individual care and support needs. Peoples care plans had detailed guidance for staff regarding their preferences.

People made choices for themselves where they had the capacity to do so and the service operated in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The service had robust staff recruitment procedures in place and people received their personal care and support at the time they expected it by staff who were punctual. There were cover arrangements in place for staff absence.

Staff had a good understanding of infection control procedures and used personal protective clothing such as aprons and gloves when carrying our personal care or meal preparation to prevent the spread of infection.

The registered manager upheld their responsibilities to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) by submitting statutory notifications.

The service had a complaints procedure in place and people knew how to make a complaint. Staff told us they felt supported by the management team. People spoke positively about staff.