Quality & Compassion Ltd

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 that 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 70 (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 their relatives gave us positive feedback about the care staff. Comments included, “They [staff] are like family, the way they [staff] treat me is good and they really know me”.

People and their relatives told us staff respected people’s dignity. Relatives told us staff ensured people who were nonverbal were included in care decisions by using personalised communication approaches and observing their preferences, responses, and behaviours.

One relative told us, “They [staff] are kind to [person], they cannot speak...they all love [person].” Another relative told us, “They [staff] will be talking to [person] all the time. Even though [person] doesn't understand and tell [person] what they're doing or what's going on.”

Staff spoke about people in a respectful manner. Staff were able to tell us how they provided dignified care and support to people.
 

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.

People and their relatives told us they were happy with the support they received from the staff. One person told us their relative was always involved in decisions and was encouraged to be themselves and engage in activities of their choice. Other relatives told us their culture was respected by staff, one relative told us, “They have to take their shoes off (when entering their home) and they are okay with that.”

Staff were able to demonstrate how they supported people to be themselves. Staff told us, “I support people to be independent as much as they can and support where needed. I make them choose their clothes, meals, personal care by washing where they can reach and assist where they cannot” and “I always encourage and explain procedures to clients to build their confidence and make them comfortable.”
 

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

People and relatives gave us examples of how they were supported by staff to maintain independence. One relative told us staff had supported their family member to lose weight, which had been beneficial to the person. Other people told us they received support at the time they wanted. One person said, “I never feel rushed.”

Staff were able to demonstrate how they supported people to express their preferences, values, and identity. Staff told us they did/enabled this, “By encouraging individuals to do as much as possible themselves without pressure of time, participation in daily choices, decisions and hobbies" and “I support people to do as much as possible for themselves by encouraging choice, involvement, and daily living skills while providing support when needed. I do not rush people and always try to work at their pace, so they feel respected, confident, and independent rather than task focused”.
 

The provider did not always listen to and understand people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff did not always respond to people’s needs in the moment or act to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

We found the provider did not always respond to changes in people’s needs and update care plans to reflect those changes. One person had been reviewed by a healthcare professional who had identified a deterioration in their health. The healthcare professional advised on signs and symptoms to be aware of which would indicate a deterioration; however, this information was not translated into the person’s care plan. This had the potential to increase harm to the person.

However, staff told us they reported any changes in people’s condition to the office. Comments from staff included, “If the state of deterioration is life threatening, I will call emergency services for an ambulance immediately” and “If any redness or skin concern is identified, we follow the company procedures by documenting and reporting the concern immediately.”

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

Staff were positive in their feedback about how they were supported by the provider and management team. Staff were positive about how they were treated. Comments included, “The service shows appreciation through support, supervision, teamwork, and recognising staff efforts. I feel respected and treated fairly by management and colleagues”, “The service shows that they value me by listening to me and asking if there is anything that I want the service to help me with. I am treated fairly at work because I always get enough working hours and given time to rest” and “The company is also very supportive towards its staff. Management and line managers are approachable, responsive, and always willing to provide guidance and assistance whenever needed”.

However, we found some staff had raised concerns about their workload and health and these had not been acted upon by the provider. We discussed this with the provider to ensure they were responsive to staff concerns.