Home Instead Central Hemel Hempstead & Chilterns

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question Good. At this assessment the rating has remained Good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.
 

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

Overall, feedback from people and their relatives was positive and indicated that staff were kind, respectful and caring. A person told us, “They (staff) are very good, I couldn't speak better of them they are all very nice.” Another person told us, “They (staff) are brilliant, nice people, like friends really.” A relative told us, “All of the staff are quite chatty, friendly and bubbly, [relative] looks forward to seeing them.”

Staff told us they enjoyed their roles and spoke respectfully about the people they supported. A member of staff told us, “My experiences are great, I feel very supported. We complete care ‘with’ a person and not ‘for’ where possible. We always promote their choices; they are the centre.”
 

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People told us that staff understood their needs and treated them as individuals. A person told us, “Yes, they (staff) have the personal touch.” A relative told us, “They respect [their] wishes, they respect [them] as a person.”

Staff had good knowledge about individual preferences and needs and confirmed they were provided with sufficient guidance via the care plans. A member of staff told us, “We shadow our potential clients with a care professional that knows the client well. We have their details and care information on the app to follow.”
 

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People’s views and decisions about care were incorporated within their care plans. This helped staff to support people in a way that allowed people to have control over their lives and make day-to-day decisions. A relative told us, “They are usually the same carers, [relative] can find it hard to get words out and sometimes it’s hard to understand unless you have a connection. The staff know and understand from the care plan.”
 

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

People and relatives told us that staff were responsive, attentive and listened. A relative told us, “They (staff) respect [their] wishes. [They] have become difficult with accepting food, but staff do their best and are patient.”

Ongoing communication and reviews offered the opportunity for changes to care arrangements to be made when people wished.

Staff observed people’s wellbeing during their visits and took action to escalate any health concerns if these were noted, such as contacting the GP or visiting health professionals.
 

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff described feeling valued and well supported. A member of staff told us, “I have found the management really supportive. Helpful and I feel listened to.” Another member of staff told us, “I feel very supported, we have our employee assistance programme that can help with wellbeing, but we also have our mental health first aider too. My line manager is great.”

The registered manager promoted a supportive environment which encouraged staff to share their feedback about their experiences at work.