Archived: Abicare Services Ltd

The service was last inspected in July 2013 and no concerns were identified.

Abicare Services limited provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection, 32 people with a variety of care needs, including older people, were receiving personal care from this service. This agency was managed from a centrally located office in Eastleigh.

There was a new manager in post who was in the process of becoming registered with CQC. 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.

The feedback we received from people was positive. They felt they were safe with the care and support provided by the staff from Abicare. The manager and staff were aware of their responsibility to provide the care and support to each person. There were systems in place to ensure the risks to people’s safety and wellbeing were identified and addressed those. People who required support to take their medicines received this safely by staff who were competent.

The manager ensured that staff had an understanding of each person they were to be supporting, prior to them starting work with them. The service knew the person’s care needs and ensured the staff had the appropriate skills and knowledge to be able to support them. People felt safe and secure with the support they were currently receiving.

Staff were motivated and proud of the role they had. There was a safe recruitment process in place and all necessary pre-employment checks had been completed. Staff said they felt supported by the manager and new staff said they had received a full induction when starting with Abicare. There were sufficient staffing levels and all staff received regular supervisions and had received and annual appraisal.

People said they had positive relationships with the care staff. People felt they were treated with respect and dignity and the staff were mindful of their privacy. People were asked for their consent before care and support was given. Staff and the registered manager knew about the Mental Capacity Act 2005, and how it affected their work.

People felt involved and listened to, they contributed to what was written in their care records and risk assessments. People received a service which was based on their personal needs and wishes. Changes in their care needs were identified and amended as required. The service was flexible to changes if they were requested. People were supported to (when necessary) access healthcare services and referred to the doctors when needed.

People and their relatives were able to complain or raise issues on an informal and formal basis with the manager, and were confident these would be resolved. The manager demonstrated the importance of effective quality assurance systems. This involved looking at different areas such as support plans and reviews, and policies and procedures. The service was committed to continuous improvement and feedback from people whether it was positive or negative. This feedback would then be used and actions taken.

People told us they received the support that had been agreed between them and the provider. One person who used the service said: "The standard of care is excellent. It means that I can continue to live in my own home" People also told us that care workers always referred to their care plans and if changes were required they were made promptly. One person who used the service said: "I couldn't wish for better carers they are so compassionate and caring".

Appropriate checks were undertaken before staff began work. Care workers we spoke with confirmed that they had been interviewed, that references had been requested and that they had completed a police check before they had started to work for Abicare. Personnel records showed that the service had taken note of care workers previous experience and training and there were copies of certificates to verify that training courses had been completed.

People who used the service, their representatives and staff were asked for their views about their care, treatment and the service. The registered manager told us they sent questionnaires annually to people who used the service. We asked to see the results from the last questionnaire which was conducted in September 2012 and found that the responses were very positive about the service.

Care workers confirmed that they always recorded the visits in people's files and had been instructed to include all the care provided and the time of the visit. We looked at a sample of six people's care documentation in the office. People's files were consistently organised and documents were clearly laid out, completed and signed and dated.