Archived: Safehands Care Limited Swinton

Updated 13 November 2015

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This was an unannounced inspection carried out on 18 June 2015. The inspection team consisted of an adult social care 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. The expert by experience contacted people who used the service via telephone following the inspection.

At the time of the inspection the service provided care and support to approximately 150 people. During the day we spoke with the manager, area manager, nine people who used the service, three relatives and four members of staff. We spent time at the Swinton Branch of Safehands, looking at various documentation such as care plans, staff personnel files, policies/procedures and quality assurance systems. We also visited two people in their own homes to see how medication was handled. Our expert by experience spoke with people who used the service and relatives over the telephone as part of the inspection, to seek feedback about the quality of service being provided.

In advance of our inspection, we liaised with commissioners at Bolton Council to see if they had any concerns about the service, or would like to share any areas of good practice with us.

Updated 13 November 2015

This was an unannounced inspection carried out on 18 June 2015.

Safehands Homecare is a domiciliary care service located in the Swinton area of Salford, Greater Manchester. The service provides care to people living in their own homes, predominantly in and around the Bolton area. At the time of the inspection the service provided care and support to approximately 150 people. We last visited the service in June 2014 and found the service was meeting the requirements of the regulations, in all the areas we looked at.

During the inspection we found a breach of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, in relation to Staffing.

There was a registered manager in post. 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 people we spoke with and their relatives told us that they felt safe with staff coming into their home and with the quality of the care provided. One person said to us; “Oh yes. My carer even takes the temperature of the water before she washes me down. We have had no accidents and I feel safe with her being in the house around my possessions”.

We looked at the systems in place to manage risk and keep people safe in their home. We found risk assessments were recorded in people's care plans which helped to keep people safe.

We found medication was handled safely and that people received their medicines at the times they needed it. As part of the inspection we visited two people in their own homes to see how medication was stored and also how records were maintained by staff.

During the inspection we spoke with staff about their understanding of safeguarding vulnerable adults. Each member of staff was able to describe the process they would follow if they suspected abuse was taking place. One member of staff said; “I had concerns about one person and reported it straight to the office. I am not afraid to stand up and report things”.

We looked at staff personnel files to ensure that staff had been recruited safely, with appropriate checks undertaken. Each file we looked at contained application forms, CRB/DBS (Criminal Records Bureau/Disclosure Barring Service) checks and evidence that at least two references had been sought from previous employers. These had been obtained before staff started working for the service.

The service used a matrix to monitor the training requirements of staff. This showed us that staff received initial training in core subjects such as safeguarding, moving and handling, infection control and health and safety. Despite this, several training courses had now expired and had passed their date for renewal. This included Moving and Handling, Safeguarding, MCA/DoLS, Health and Safety and Infection Control. We raised these concerns with the manager and area manager who acknowledged this as being an area for improvement. This was a breach of regulation 18 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, in relation to Staffing.

We saw that staff received regular supervision as part of their on-going development. This provided an opportunity to discuss their workload, any concerns and any training opportunities they may have. We saw appropriate records were maintained to show these had taken place.

The people we spoke with and their relatives told us they were happy with the care provided by the service. One person said to us; “I have a carer who is first class. I get a wonderful service from this agency. My carer treats me with great dignity and care”.

People told us they were treated with dignity, respect and were allowed privacy at times they needed it. People also said they were offered choice about how they liked things doing.

We found that the care plans we looked at did not contain sufficient person centered information about people who used the service. Following the inspection, the manager contacted us to say this issue had been addressed with staff and would look at re-writing the care plans with specific information about people’s choices and personal preferences.

There was a complaint procedure in place. We saw complaints were responded to appropriately with an individual response given to the complainant.

The staff we spoke with were positive about the leadership of the service. One member of staff said; “The current manager is very understanding which makes things easier for us”.

We found there were systems in place to monitor the quality of service provided to people who used the service.