Compassionate Care Team Ltd

Updated 17 September 2019

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector 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.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 16 people who used the service about their experience of the care provided, we also spoke with four relatives. We spoke with three care staff, the office manager, the assistant manager and the registered manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.

Updated 17 September 2019

About the service

Compassionate Care Team Ltd is registered as a domiciliary care agency providing the regulated activity ‘personal care’ to people who live in their own homes in Retford, Worksop, Ollerton and Edwinstow. At the time of the inspection visit there were 70 people using the service.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Systems were in place to safeguard people from abuse. Risks were assessed and safely managed. Medicines were managed safely, procedures were in place to support this. Some adjustments to a new electronic system needed to be made to ensure that staff were fully aware of when PRN should be administered. Safeguarding issues and complaints were analysed, and improvements were made. Staff were recruited safely. Sufficient numbers of staff were available to meet people’s needs.

People’s needs were assessed, and outcomes were met. Staff told us they received the training they needed to do their job well. People told us their nutritional needs were met. Care records described the support required to assist people with swallowing risks. People told us they were supported to access healthcare if they needed it. People’s consent to care was recorded in their care records. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People consistently told us the staff team were caring and kind and they were fond of their regular staff. The provider had the interests of people at heart - staff and people confirmed this. People were given the opportunity to express their views and told us staff listened to them. Staff demonstrated a good awareness of how to maintain privacy and dignity.

People were receiving care which was responsive to their needs. People were consulted about the care they receive and were asked for feedback. People consistently confirmed they were fully involved in the development of their care plans, although some people told us they had not had reviews of their care plans recently. Care plans contained sufficient detail to meet people’s basic needs but required more information about people's likes/dislikes and a fuller history of people's lives. Complaints were managed and fully reviewed to ensure lessons were learnt.

The provider had a clear vision. Staff told us leadership was visible, accessible and managers lead by example. Staff were complimentary of the support they received from the management team. The provider recently implemented a new electronic care system. The system has improved the way care is recorded, incidents are reported, and information is shared within the team. Some people have expressed frustration with the new electronic care system and told us they did not have access to their information. The provider was looking at ways to improve this. Staff told us morale in the team was good.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection (and update)

The last rating for this service was Requires Improvement (published 30 January 2019) and there were multiple breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.