Northampton

‘Northampton’, also known as Deep Heart Care is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of the inspection two people were receiving personal care.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People’s needs had been assessed prior to receiving care, however some care files lacked the information required or contained incorrect information. Risk assessments had been completed, but some lacked the information required, however staff knew people well and understood their needs.

People were supported by staff who treated them with kindness and respect. Staff knew how to identify and raise any safeguarding concerns. People told us staff were caring, kind and compassionate and that they felt safe with staff.

The provider had not always followed safe staff recruitment procedures in relation to references. Staff had Disclosure and Barring Service checks completed before they started working for the company. Staff received training and support to ensure they could do their roles.

Staff supported people to access healthcare when required.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Systems and processes were in place to investigate any concerns or complaints raised, however there had been no complaints made at the time of inspection.

Basic audits were completed; however, they had failed to identify some of issues raised on inspection.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was ‘inspected but not rated’ due to the provider supporting only one person for less than six months. (published 25 July 2019)

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

‘Northampton’, also known as Deep Heart Care, is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to older people. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) only inspects where people receive personal care. This is to help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of inspection, the service had been supporting one person for less than six months. As a result, we have been unable to give the service a rating.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

At the time of inspection, the service only supported one person. We were unable to speak with this person or any relative due to their care needs and an unexpected change of their circumstance. We spoke with their representative who had a limited insight into the care the person received.

The provider did not have all the required risk assessments in place and they were not regularly reviewed as people’s needs changed. Care plans were also not sufficiently updated and didn’t always contain information about all the areas of people’s current care needs.

Systems were in place to record safeguarding incidents and to identify areas of improvement, however no incidents had occurred. Staffing systems were in place and there were enough staff to keep people safe. Improvements were required to recruitment practice to ensure people had sufficient references in place.

Staff were knowledgeable about infection control and medication procedures, however we were unable to seek feedback about the effectiveness in these areas of care.

The registered manager completed assessments of people’s care needs, however this could be further developed by involving the local authority for a full review of people’s needs. Staff received induction and training in the basic elements of care. There was limited evidence that staff received regular supervision.

Staff worked with healthcare providers when people were unwell, however further improvements were required to ensure there was close liaison with other agencies, including other healthcare professionals for people’s ongoing health requirements.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible, however people's mental capacity assessments were incomplete.

Systems were in place to record and investigate complaints, however none had been received. People’s end of life care preferences had not been recorded.

The registered manager had limited understanding of the regulatory requirements and had committed to making improvements in this area. There were limited opportunities for people and others involved in people’s care to provide feedback.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 19 July 2017 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the date of registration and when the service had begun to provide care to people.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.