Universal Care Agency Ltd

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

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 made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

Assessments of people were completed prior to the commencement of the service to ensure their needs could be appropriately met. The provider described the processes in place prior to starting a new package of care for a person. These processes included contact with and a visit to the person to discuss their needs and views, consider if any equipment was required to support the person’s safety and contact professionals and relatives if needed. The information gathered during assessments was used to create individual plans of care and support.

People and relatives confirmed care and support was planned in partnership with them. A relative told us, “I was involved with [person’s] care plan right at the beginning, but not sure if or when it has been reviewed.” Another relative said, “[Person’s] care plan has been reviewed.” A person told us, “Yes [I was involved with assessment], it [care plan and package of care] was set up and reviewed not so long ago.”

The provider told us, following a new care package being implemented they would, “Review the care with the person and staff after 2 to 3 weeks. This was to ensure the [person] was happy with the care, and it was meeting their needs. The care plan would then be updated if required.” We found care plans contained up to date information.

The provider planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards.

People and their relatives did not express any concerns in relation to the care they received and most of the people and relatives spoken with told us they managed their healthcare needs independently. Care plans we reviewed had enough detail with information that was evidence- based and in line with good practice standards to support care staff. This included food and drink consistency and involving health professionals where more clinical tasks where needed. Referrals were made to health and social care professionals as required to ensure people received appropriate care and treatment, and this was confirmed by people and relatives.

People had a consistent staff team in place who knew them well and were knowledgeable of people’s specific risks related to their care and support.

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. They made sure people only needed to tell their story once by sharing their assessment of needs when people moved between different services.

The feedback from people and relatives on how the staff worked together and with external health professionals was positive. People told us that if they were ill or needed support to get help from health professionals, staff would support with this.

The provider and staff shared any changes in people’s needs with each other through discussions and electronic systems. This ensured all staff had up to date information about people in a timely way.

Information was shared between services if required.

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support.

Many people we spoke with managed their own wellbeing and made their own decisions on how they worked to maintain a healthy lifestyle. However, where staff needed to support people with either their mental or physical health, they were aware of their responsibilities.

People and relatives told us staff were proactive in ensuring people’s nutritional and hydrational needs were met throughout the day when required. People’s comments included, “The carers always make sure I have plenty of drinks during the day” and “Carers provide me with breakfast, lunch and an evening meal daily, plus drinks during the day.”

Care records captured the support people required with their health needs and what action staff should take when there was any deterioration to an individual’s health.

A staff member described how they supported people to live healthier lives. This included supporting and assisting people to change their body position to prevent skin deterioration and encouraging a person to eat healthy meals to help manage diabetes. This staff member told us, “We would talk to people and can give suggestions, but it is up to them.”

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and that they met both clinical expectations and the expectations of people themselves.

There were systems in place to ensure people’s needs were identified, assessed and monitored and we saw evidence staff routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to support improvement. This ensured people received the correct support and allowed additional support and guidance to be requested in a timely way. Staff confirmed they were aware of people’s needs and were confident they provided care in line with these.

People and relatives were positive about the care they received, describing it as of a good standard and meeting their expectations. A person told us, “It’s excellent, even better than expected.” Another person said, “They [staff] provide me with whatever I need on a daily basis.” A relative said, “[Person] is at risk of developing pressure sores. The carers have certain creams they apply to protect her skin. I feel the carers are very skilled and knowledgeable and are very observant of [person’s] skin condition.” Another relative told us, “They [person] always look forward to their [staff] visits. The carers always communicate with her and in a very friendly way, tells her what they will be doing and asks if she is ok with the moves or tasks.”

The provider had systems and processes in place to gather feedback from people and relatives on their care and to monitor the support provided through the completion of staff observations, spot checks and competency assessments.

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment.

People were asked for their consent before care and treatment was provided. This was confirmed by all the people and relatives we spoke with. People and relatives’ comments included, “The carers always inform [person] what they will be doing and ask for her consent to start the task” and, “They [staff] always ask before doing anything.”

Where required, relatives had sought and been granted legal powers to make important decisions in people’s best interests. This was recorded in people’s care records.

The provider and staff had received training in The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and people’s capacity to make decisions was assessed in line with this act, where required.