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Archived: Better-Care Domiciliary Services Limited

Overall: Requires improvement read more about inspection ratings

Room 8, 30 Boutport Street, Barnstaple, Devon, EX31 1RP (01271) 314716

Provided and run by:
Better-Care Domiciliary Services Limited

All Inspections

6 March 2018

During a routine inspection

This announced comprehensive inspection on 6, 26 and 27 March 2018. On the first and second days, we visited the office and reviewed the systems for managing the service. On the third day, we visited three people who used the service in their own homes.

On 28 March 2018, we received notification from the commissioners of the service that the service had contacted them and had given them written notice of their intent to close the business. An action plan was drawn up between the service and the commissioners as to how to do this. This took into account the best interests of the people and staff working for the service. The service end date was agreed as 20 May 2018.

At the time of writing this report, the agency was no longer providing a service. Notifications had been received by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) with a voluntary application to deregister the service which was in the process of being dealt with.

This service was a domiciliary care agency. It was registered with CQC to provide personal care to older and younger adults living in their own houses or flats. These people might have lived with dementia, a mental health illness, a drug and alcohol illness, an eating disorder, a physical disability or a sensory impairment. There were 20 people using the service at the time of inspection.

There was registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC 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 registered manager has submitted their voluntary application to deregister their role at the service.

People were happy with the service they received. People had built up meaningful relationships with the care workers who supported them and felt comfortable with them in their homes. People described care workers as kind and caring.

People were kept safe and cared for by staff who had been safely recruited, trained and supervised in their work. They had undertaken training in the protection of vulnerable adults and medicine management.

There was sufficient staff to meet people’s needs with no missed visits. However, the service relied upon other registered services at times to fill in gaps they could not cover in people’s care, particularly at weekends. This had been agreed with the commissioners of the service.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Care workers had received training on the Mental Capacity Act 2005. They ensured people were asked for their consent before they carried out any care or support. The service complied with the accessible information standard which included information about how to communicate with people in their individual ways.

Each person had risk assessments and a care plan in place. However, these were variable and were not always person centred or fully completed. This made it difficult for staff to provide care and support in a consistent way. However, staff always ensured people received their planned care in the way they chose.

People were supported to eat a nutritious diet and food and drink of their choice. In between care visits, care workers always made sure people had snacks and drinks available. People were encouraged to maintain their independence as much as possible and care workers encouraged them to maintain their health and wellbeing. Health and social care professionals were involved where necessary.

There were some quality monitoring systems and processes in place. However, these needed to be improved to ensure continuous development of all aspects of the agency. There was a complaints policy in place.

We made one breach of Regulation in relation to the management of the service.