Archived: Safehands Care Ltd

Updated 9 May 2018

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 is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Safehands Care Ltd is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. The service covers a wide range of dependency needs including adults, children, people with a learning disability, people with mental health problems and younger adults.

Safehands Care Ltd also provides care and support to people living in two supported living settings so that they can live in their own home as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

This comprehensive inspection visit took place on 17 April 2018 and was announced. The provider was given 24 hours’ notice because the location provided a domiciliary care service to people who lived in the community. We needed to be sure that we could access the office premises.

The inspection team consisted of two adult social care inspectors and an expert-by-experience. The expert-by-experience had personal experience of using or caring for someone who used this type of care service. The expert by experience had a background supporting older people.

Before our inspection on 17 April 2018 we reviewed the information we held on the service. This included notifications we had received from the provider, about incidents that affect the health, safety and welfare of people who lived at the home and previous inspection reports. We also checked to see if any information concerning the care and welfare of people supported by the services had been received.

We contacted the commissioning departments at Lancashire County Council and Blackpool Council. This helped us to gain a balanced overview of what people experienced accessing the service.

As part of the inspection we used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection visit we spoke with a range of people about the service. They included 12 people supported in the community, six family members, four people in a supporting living house and four staff supporting them. We also went to the Safehands Care Ltd office and spoke with the regional operations manager, registered manager, branch manager and four staff members providing care in the community. We looked at the care records of five people, recruitment and supervision records of four staff members, the training matrix and records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 9 May 2018

Safehands Care Ltd provide a domiciliary care service to people who require support in their own homes and supported living tenancies. People supported include children with a disability, older adults, adults with physical and learning disabilities or mental illness and individuals who need assistance due to illness. At the time of our inspection visit the service supported 60 people in the community and eight people in two supported living houses.

At our last inspection we rated the service Good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of Good. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

There was a registered manager 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.

We spoke with 12 people supported in the community and six family members. They told us staff who visited them were polite, friendly and caring. They told us they received patient and safe care and they liked the staff who supported them. Comments received included, “My carers are very nice and professional people. They don’t rush me and I feel safe in their care.” And, “The staff who visit me are very good and I am happy with my care.”

Four people living in the supported living house we visited told us they were happy, safe and liked the staff who supported them.

Prior to our inspection visit a number of people supported in the community had experienced problems with the reliability of their carers and poor communication from the services management. We spoke with 12 people receiving care and six family members. Although not everyone was completely happy, the majority of people we spoke with said there had been improvements. They told us the reliability of their carers had improved and they had been contacted if their carers were running late. One person said, “They had lots of staffing issues and it was really bad but is much better now.”

The service had systems in place to record safeguarding concerns, accidents and incidents and take necessary action as required. Staff had received safeguarding training and understood their responsibilities to report unsafe care or abusive practices.

Risk assessments had been developed to minimise the potential risk of harm to people during the delivery of their care. These had been kept under review and were relevant to the care provided.

Staff had been recruited safely, appropriately trained and supported. They had skills, knowledge and experience required to support people with their care and social needs.

Staff responsible for assisting people with their medicines had received training to ensure they had the competency and skills required. People told us they received their medicines at the times they needed them.

The service had safe infection control procedures in place and staff had received infection control training. Staff had been provided with protective clothing such as gloves and aprons as required. This reduced the risk of cross infection.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

People’s care and support was planned with them. People told us they had been consulted and listened to about how their care would be delivered.

Staff supported people to have a nutritious dietary and fluid intake. Assistance was provided in preparation of food and drinks as people needed.

People were supported to have access to healthcare professionals and their healthcare needs had been met.

People told us staff were caring towards them. Staff we spoke with understood the importance of high standards of care to give people meaningful lives.

The service had information with regards to support from an external advocate should this be required by people they supported.

People told us staff who visited them treated them with respect and dignity.

People who used the service and their relatives knew how to raise a concern or to make a complaint. The service had kept a record of complaints received and these had been responded to appropriately.

The service used a variety of methods to assess and monitor the quality of the service. These included daily service meetings, quality assurance visits, satisfaction surveys and care reviews.

The registered manager and staff were clear about their roles and responsibilities and were committed to providing a good standard of care and support to people in their care.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.