Archived: Auscare Professional Service Limited

Updated 30 March 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.

The inspection was carried out by two adult social care inspectors and an expert-by-experience. An expert-by-experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. In this instance the expert by experience made telephone calls to people who use the service and relatives of people who use the service.

Before the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service. This included looking at information we had received about the service and statutory notifications the registered manager had sent us. We also contacted the local authority contracts and safeguarding teams.

We asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. The provider did not return the PIR and we took this into account when we made judgements in this report.

We started this inspection on 25 September 2017 when we spoke on the telephone to four people who used the service and two relatives of people who used the service. We made a visit to the office on 5 October 2017 to meet with the registered manager and review documentation relating to care and the running of the service. We looked at the care records of three people who used the service, five staff recruitment files, training records and other records relating to the day to day running of the service. We spoke with four members of staff on 6 October 2017. Following the inspection we spoke with staff from the local authority commissioning this service.

We gave the provider short notice of our intention to inspect the service. This is in line with our current methodology for inspecting domiciliary care agencies to make sure the registered manager can be available.

Updated 30 March 2018

We started this inspection on 25 September 2017 when we spoke on the telephone to four people who use the service and two relatives of people who use the service. We made a visit to the office on 5 October 2017 to meet with the registered manager and review documentation relating to care and the running of the service. We spoke with four members of staff on 6 October 2017.

We gave the provider short notice of our intention to inspect the service. This is in line with our current methodology for inspecting domiciliary care agencies to make sure the registered manager can be available.

This was the first inspection of Auscare Professional Service Limited since it registered with the Care Quality Commission in August 2016

There was a registered manager in post who is also the registered provider for 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.

Auscare Professional Service Limited provides care and support to people living in their own homes in the Sheffield area although the registered office is in Wakefield West Yorkshire. At the time of our visit the registered manager told us the service was providing personal care to 11 people. However we discovered since the inspection this number was incorrect and it was 20 people.

People who used the service told us they felt safe and staff knew what to do if they thought people were at risk. However we did not find systems in place to support people's safety within the service. Risk assessments were insufficient and medicines were not always managed safely. There were no systems in place to monitor or investigate missed calls.

Staff recruitment procedures were not safe and there was no recorded evidence of staff receiving appropriate induction, training or support.

Staff were not aware of their responsibilities in relation to the Mental Capacity Act and staff completing capacity assessments had not been trained to do so and were not aware of the principles of the assessment.

People told us staff supported them if they were unwell and staff told us they would contact health care professionals if the need arose.

Overall people felt staff were caring although some felt they were rushed in their approach. Staff we spoke with demonstrated a caring attitude. People felt staff met their privacy and dignity needs although this was not referred to within care plans.

There was no evidence of person centred care. Care plans were insufficient to provide staff with the information they needed to support people and we found care plans were not always up to date. There was no evidence of people who used the service being involved in the planning or review of their care.

Calls were not always made in accordance with the planned times. We found some calls recorded for as little as three minutes.

Complaints were not recorded or responded to.

There was a lack of effective governance. The registered provider/manager was not fully aware of their responsibilities. Systems were not in place to audit the safety or quality of the service.

We found seven breaches of regulation. These were in relation to person centred care, consent, safe care and treatment, managing complaints, good governance, staffing and fit and proper persons employed.

The overall rating for this service is ‘Inadequate’ and the service has therefore been placed in ‘Special measures’. Services in special measures will be kept under review and, if we have not taken immediate action to propose to cancel the provider’s registration of the service, will be inspected again within six months. The expectation is that providers found to have been providing inadequate care should have made significant improvements within this timeframe.

If not enough improvement is made within this timeframe so that there is still a rating of inadequate for any key question or overall, we will take action in line with our enforcement procedures to begin the process of preventing the provider from operating this service. This will lead to cancelling their registration or to varying the terms of their registration within six months if they do not improve. This service will continue to be kept under review and, if needed, could be escalated to urgent enforcement action. Where necessary, another inspection will be conducted within a further six months, and if there is not enough improvement so there is still a rating of inadequate for any key question or overall, we will take action to prevent the provider from operating this service. This will lead to cancelling their registration or to varying the terms of their registration. For adult social care services the maximum time for being in special measures will usually be no more than 12 months. If the service has demonstrated improvements when we inspect it and it is no longer rated as inadequate for any of the five key questions it will no longer be in special measures