31 July 2018
During a routine inspection
This service provides 24 Hour live in personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to older adults and younger adults with learning and physical disabilities. Not everyone using Promedica24 receives a regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.
Staff are recruited by the provider in Poland to support people in the UK. Each care worker supports a person for a period of between six and twelve weeks in their home. Staff then have a break of between one and three months, when a different member of staff provides support. At the time of our inspection the service was providing personal care and support to 13 people.
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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People’s safety was promoted with staff member(s) being in their home 24 hours, seven days a week. Staff knew their responsibilities to protect people and who to report any concerns to. People’s risks had been identified, assessed and plans had been developed that showed staff the steps needed to ensure people were at low risk of harm or injury. People who had support with their medicines had them administered when needed, with staff who were trained and competent to do so. Staff profiles were given to people so they had an overview to see if the staff member would be suitable in terms of interests. Staff remained with the person over a set period of time and stayed with the person over that period to ensure they were available to meet people’s needs. People were protected from the risk of infection as staff practice followed good practice guidance.
Staff had received training before starting to work for the provider, which ensured their skills and knowledge reflected the needs of the people they cared for. This included an English language test as all staff were recruited in Poland. Staff were supported with regular meetings with their care manager or the registered manager. The management team checked that staff were working as expected, which involved the person receiving the care to check they were happy with the staff in their home. People were supported with their meals and staff gave people a choice or provided the assistance needed to enjoy their meal. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. Staff were knowledgeable about people’s capacity to make decisions. People attended healthcare appointments as required and staff would help with telephone calls and reminders if needed.
People got to know their staff member and spent time together so they were provided with a personalised service in their home. Staff spent time chatting and getting to know people while providing care and support. People received care that met their needs and had been able to tell staff how they wanted their care. Staff were considerate and supported people in maintaining their dignity.
People’s views and decisions about their care had been recorded and were changed when needed. People knew how to make a complaint and information was provided to people who used the service should they wish to raise a complaint.
People, their family members and staff felt the management team were accessible and could speak with them to provide feedback about the service. The management team had kept their knowledge up to date. The provider ensured regular checks were completed to monitor the quality of the care that people received and to action where improvements were needed.