Archived: Dementia Care and Support at Home Office

We carried out this unannounced 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 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008. It was also part of the second testing phase of the new inspection process CQC is introducing for adult social care services. The inspection consisted of a lead inspector from the Care Quality Commission 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.

Dementia Care and Support at Home is a care service that provides support to people in their own home, some of whom suffer from the early stages of dementia. The agency office is located on a busy main road in Swinton with parking space available for staff and other people who may wish to visit the office. At the time of our inspection the agency provided care and support to 11 people and employed six members of staff.

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 and has the legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the law; as does the provider.

We identified one person as being ‘at risk’ of choking whilst eating their food, however an appropriate risk assessment had not been completed which could place this person at risk. We raised this issue with the manager. Staff had undertaken training on safeguarding adults from abuse and they displayed a good knowledge of the action they would take to manage any incidents or allegations of potential abuse. People who used the service and their relatives told us that they felt safe whilst staff were with them in their home.

People told us that they felt care workers cared about them and listened to them. They gave positive feedback about their individual care workers.

There were care plans in place that described people’s care and support needs and how these would be met by staff. The registered manager completed ‘variation’ forms when people’s needs changed or needed to me amended. Relatives we spoke with told us they were kept updated about any changes to a person’s care needs.

People were supported to remain as independent as possible and to retain contact with the local community. There were appropriate risk assessments in place that allowed people to take responsibility for their actions and be as independent as possible, but remain safe.

Staff had undertaken training on the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA)

Staff had undertaken training that provided them with the skills to carry out their role effectively. People who used the service told us that staff had the right kind of knowledge and skills and that they were reliable and trustworthy. They said that generally, they arrived at the right time and stayed for the agreed length of time, but that on occasions they were sometimes held up whilst on other visits.