TogetherCare

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People and relatives all told us that staff treated them with great kindness. A person said, “I like the way the carers talk to me in a very caring manner. They know I’m on my own and they try and bring me close in conversation”. A relative said, “They appear very caring to my relative and treat her with respect and dignity”, another relative said “My relative is comfortable with the carers and that’s the main thing”.

Professionals also echoed this and we were told, “My experience with the agency is that they are caring and compassionate and the management team have responded promptly when any issues or concerns have been identified”.

People used words to describe the staff such as, “lovely”, “polite”, “kind”, “very caring” and “good at what they do”. One person stated, “The carers themselves are brilliant”.

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Care plans were person-centred, based aroundtheindividual’s needs. They included information about people’s likes and preferences and their personal history. Staff were knowledgeable about people’s individual needs and how to meet them.Relatives were positive about the way people were treated, one said, “My relative has dementia, but the carers really understand her well.They really treat her as a person”.

People were offered choice and control over their care arrangements, including theoptionto select the gender of their care staff. Where individuals felt that a care worker was not a suitable match for any reason, alternative staff could beallocatedin accordance withtheir preferences and needs.

People and those closest to them could accessreal‑timeinformation through the provider’s digital system, including rotas and which staff would be attending.

The provider promoted people’s independence, enabling people to know their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

Care records, including reviews and daily notes, showed staff promoted independence through prompting and guiding rather than completing care and support for people.

Staff and management were passionate about supporting people to be as independent as possible. Relatives told us staff supported people to maintain their independence, one relative said. “They know her and what she likes”, and another said, “The care plan reflects her individual needs.”

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

Staff we spoke with had a good understanding of people’s needs and how to meet them. 

Relatives told us staff knew their family members well. One relative told us, “If they think there’s anything wrong, they will ring me.” Another relative said, “They listen and they act.”

Staff supported people to attend medical appointments, and where appropriate stayed with people who had been admitted to hospital.

The provider cared about and promoted the well-being of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff participated and completed in regular training to develop and support them in their role. Staff had regular supervision meetings with a senior manager where they could discuss matters of relevance to them. Most staff told us it was a good place to work and they felt supported.