Archived: Care Connections Ltd

Updated 28 February 2017

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.

This inspection took place on 5 January 2017 and was announced. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the service provided was domiciliary care in people’s own homes and we wanted to make sure the registered manager and staff would be available to speak with us. The inspection was carried out by one adult social care inspector.

Prior to the inspection we looked at the information we had about the service. This information included the statutory notifications that the provider had sent to CQC. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. We reviewed the Provider Information Record (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, tells us what the service does well and the improvements they plan to make. Questionnaires had been sent to staff and health and social care professionals by CQC. We used the responses received to aid our planning of this inspection.

We contacted four health and social care professionals who had been involved with the service. This included community nurses, social workers, commissioners and others. We asked them for some feedback about the service. We were provided with a range of feedback to assist with our inspection of the service. You can see what they said in the main body of this report.

We spoke with four people using the service about their experiences with Care Connections Ltd. We also spoke with three family members of people using the service by telephone. We spent time at the provider’s office talking with staff and looking at written records. We spoke with three staff and the registered manager.

We looked at the care records of the four people using the service, five staff files, training records for all staff, staff duty rotas and other records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 28 February 2017

Care Connections Ltd provides care to people in their own homes in Gloucester and the surrounding areas. The service is provided to people who have a range of needs including a learning disability, mental health needs, physical disability and age related frailty. At the time of our inspection, 14 people were receiving a service from Care Connections Ltd.

This inspection took place on 5 January 2017. The service was last inspected in November 2013 and there were no breaches of regulation at that time.

There was a registered manager at the service. 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 received a service that was safe. People were safe from harm because staff were aware of their responsibilities and, knew how to report any concerns. There were enough skilled and experienced staff to safely provide care. Recruitment checks were carried out before staff worked with people to ensure they received care from suitable staff. Risks to people were assessed and action taken to manage these. Where people needed help with medicines, they were protected from risks because medicines were safely managed.

The service provided was effective. Staff received the training, supervision and support required to effectively meet people’s needs. The registered manager and staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and, worked to ensure people’s rights were respected. Where people required, staff supported them to eat and drink. Staff ensured people received assistance from other health and social care professionals when required.

People received a service that was caring. People received care and support from caring and compassionate staff who knew them well. Staff provided the care and support people needed and treated them with dignity and respect. People and, where appropriate, their families were actively involved in making decisions about their care and support.

The service was responsive to people’s needs. People received person centred care and support. The service listened to the views of people using the service and others and made changes as a result. People were supported to participate in a range of activities based upon their assessed needs and wishes.

The service was well-led. The registered manager and senior staff provided effective leadership and management. They had clear visions and values for the service and, had communicated these effectively to people, their relatives, staff and other health and social care professionals. Staff, people and their relatives spoke positively about the registered manager. Quality assurance checks and audits were occurring regularly and identified actions required to improve the service.