Highland Care UK Limited

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

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.

The provider made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

People and relatives confirmed they were included in the assessment process of their care needs. They confirmed care needs were regularly reviewed and some relatives told us they were expecting a care needs review soon.

The nominated individual stated, “The [person], during the assessment, is able to tell us what they want, how they want staff to behave when they come into the property. Where we have a [person] that is not verbal, we rely on the relatives and family members to give us as much information as possible.” Records showed assessments were comprehensive and included details of which tasks were carried out by family and what the individual was able to do independently.

The provider planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards.

People and relatives described how staff supported people with meals according to their preferences. A person told us, “I buy the ready-made meals, I’ll get one out of the freezer and when they come, it’s ready then to go into the oven or microwave.” A relative said, “With the drinks, yes. [Person] eats the porridge, actually sips it rather than eat it. When [person] needs help, [staff] do help.”

Staff told us how they supported people with eating their meals. A staff member said, “I support people with meals and hydration. I monitor food and fluid intake, follow care plans, and report concerns like poor appetite or dehydration. I also encourage choice and independence.”

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. They made sure people only needed to tell their story once by sharing their assessment of needs when people moved between different services.

Staff told us they worked well together as a team. Responses included, “I personally take pride in helping staff as often as possible in any way that I can. I feel the same support from those I work with” and “I have the best team at work; we relate to one another professionally which results in great teamwork.”

The nominated individual gave examples of referring and liaising with other health professionals such as paramedics, district nurses, the continence team, GPs, occupational therapists and community mental health teams. They told us, “Partnership working is very important because the [person] is at the centre of the care and [this] helps ensure that the people receive coordinated, good, holistic care.” The nominated individual told us they had a good working relationship with social services and said, “We do have communications with social services out of hours. So, they are always there. You can send them emails. You can call them and they will respond.”

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support.

Relatives told us they were satisfied with the support people received to maintain their health. A relative said, “They provide quite a bit of help like when I request for them to do tests [for infection].”

Staff were knowledgeable about how to support people to maintain their health. A staff member told us, “I make sure [person] and I go on regular walks and other forms of exercise suitable to their needs. I do escort people to medical appointments.” Daily records showed staff recorded outcomes of medical appointments, intake of food and drinks, and any exercise undertaken. Staff reported any concerns about people’s physical or mental health to managers so that appropriate action could be taken.

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they met the expectations of people and their families.

A relative gave examples of how staff monitored and improved the care they provided. The person had a history of falling out of bed and was fearful when being repositioned in bed, so staff came up with ways to help them feel less fearful. The person also needed their food blended due to swallowing difficulties and staff would let the relative know if the food was not blended enough.

The managers told us staff reported changes in people’s needs so they could discuss with the appropriate authority to ensure new identified needs were not neglected. The nominated individual told us, “The staff will always communicate with us, and we will communicate with the right authority; it could be the district nurses, the incontinence team or social services.”

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care.

People signed consent forms to agree to receiving care. Where a person lacked capacity or had physical limitations, the reason why they could not sign was clearly stated. People and relatives told us staff always asked permission before carrying out any care task or before going into a different room.

Staff understood the need to obtain consent before giving care and demonstrated they understood the processes involved in decision making where a person lacked capacity. A staff member said, “I always ask permission before assisting someone. For example, I ask before helping with personal care and respect their decision if they refuse.” Another staff member said, “I explain what I’m doing in a way the person understands. If someone lacks capacity, I follow best interest decisions and involve family or professionals.”