Archived: Nurseplus UK

Nurse Plus and Carer Plus is a home care agency based in Newcastle under Lyme, Staffordshire. It supports people who live in their own homes in a variety of ways including providing personal care which is a regulated activity. At the time of our inspection 23 people received personal care.

The service had a registered manager. 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.

People who used the service were safe. They were supported and cared for by staff that had been recruited under recruitment procedures that ensured only staff that were suited to work at the service were employed. Staff understood and discharged their responsibilities for protecting people from abuse and avoidable harm. They advised people about how to keep safe in their homes.

People’s care plans included risk assessments of activities associated with their personal care routines. The risk assessments provided information for care workers that enabled them to support people safely but without restricting their independence.

Enough suitably skilled and knowledgeable staff were deployed to meet the needs of the people using the service. This meant that with very few exceptions home care visits were made at times that people expected.

People were supported to receive the medicines by staff who were trained in medicines management.

Care workers were supported through supervision and training. People who used the service told us told us they felt staff were very well trained and competent.

The registered manager understood their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2015. Staff had awareness of the MCA and understood they could provide care and support only if a person consented to it and if the proper safeguards were put in place to protect their rights.

Staff understood the importance of people having health diets and eating and drinking. They supported people to have meals. They also supported people to access health services when they needed them.

People were involved in decisions about their care and support. They received the information they needed about the service and about how the service could support them.

People told us they were treated with dignity and respect. The registered manager actively promoted values of compassion and kindness in the service.

People contributed to the assessment of their needs and to reviews of their care plans. Their care plans were centred on their individual needs. People knew how to raise concerns if they felt they had to and they were confident they would be taken seriously by the provider. When people expressed preferences about their care and support these were acted upon by the service.

The provider had effective arrangements for monitoring the quality of the service. These arrangements included asking for people’s feedback about the service and a range of checks and audits. The quality assurance procedures were used to identify and implement improvements to people’s experience of the service.

At the time of our inspection the service were supporting two people in their own homes and we telephoned them during the inspection. They told us that they were happy with the care and support they received from the service. One person said, "The staff member who looks after me goes above and beyond what they need to do. The care I receive is wonderful." People who used the service felt that they received care and support according to their individual needs and in the way they preferred it. People also felt that the staff who supported them were caring and effective.

The provider employed four staff members to look after people in their own homes. There was a robust staff recruitment procedure in place and staff received on-going supervision and support. The provider also had a good staff training programme in place. This helped to ensure that staff were safe and equipped with the skills needed to meet the needs of people who used the service.