Background to this inspection
Updated
12 February 2021
The inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
This inspection was carried out by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency, providing personal care to people living in their own homes.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. The registered manager was also the nominated individual and the proprietor of the service. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. Inspection activity started on 19 January 2021 and ended on 29 January 2021. We visited the site office on 19 January 2021.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed other information we had received about the service, including notifications received from the provider. The law requires providers to send us notifications about certain events that happen during the running of a service. We sought feedback from the local authority, community professionals who work with the service and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We reviewed the provider’s website. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with three people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the registered manager, care manager and nine staff. The care manager deputised for the registered manager in their absence. We reviewed a range of records. This included six people’s care records, medication records and daily notes. We looked at five staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service were reviewed, including the provider’s policies, procedures and quality assurance audits.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. We spoke with two community professionals who engaged with the service.
Updated
12 February 2021
About the service
Home Instead Senior Care is a domiciliary care service, part of the Home Instead Senior Care franchise. Not everyone who uses the service receives personal care. The Care Quality Commission only inspects where people receive personal support 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 the service was providing personal care to six people living in Newbury, Abingdon, Didcot and the surrounding areas. It provides a service to older adults, people living with dementia and people with a physical disability.
People’s experience of using this service
People were supported by enough staff, who understood their responsibilities to safeguard people from discrimination, neglect, and abuse. Staff effectively assessed risks to people’s health and safety, which were managed safely. People experienced good continuity and consistency of care from trusted staff who knew them well and how to meet their needs. The provider recruited staff in accordance with regulations and ensured only staff suitable to support people living in their own home were appointed. People received their prescribed medicines safely from staff who had completed the required training and had their competency to do so regularly assessed. Staff followed required food safety standards when preparing or handling food. Staff were supported to raise concerns and report incidents, which ensured action was taken to protect people from similar events in the future.
People experienced effective support, which reflected best practice guidance and achieved good outcomes, enabling them to have a good quality of life. People were supported to eat and drink enough to meet their needs and maintain their health.
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.
Staff were kind and caring in their approach, respecting people’s individuality and promoting their independence. People were fully involved in decisions about all aspects of their care, which made them feel valued.
People were placed at the heart of the service and experienced person-centred care, which was responsive to their needs and reflected their choices, preferences and wishes. Staff felt valued and well supported by the registered manager who had created an open and honest culture, which was reflected in the approach of the staff. Staff were passionate about the people they supported and continuously strove to achieve good outcomes for them. At the time of inspection, the service was not supporting anyone with end of life care. When the service had supported people at the end of their life, they had received compassionate care, which respected their wishes and ensured they experienced a comfortable, dignified and pain-free death.
The service was well managed and well organised. The registered manager was highly visible and provided clear and direct leadership, which inspired staff. The registered manager had the skills, knowledge, and experience to lead effectively. There were robust arrangements to manage complaints and monitor the quality of the service, the performance of staff and to drive continuous improvements, to ensure people experienced high quality care.
Rating at last inspection
This service was registered with us on 1 May 2019 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on when the service was first registered with us.
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.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk