We carried out a review of the data available to us about Blakehill Healthcare on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Blakehill Healthcare, you can give feedback on this service.
Blakehill Healthcare is a domiciliary care service, providing personal care to people living in and around Chippenham. At the time of our inspection, 22 people were receiving the regulated activity of personal care.
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.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Safeguarding was taken seriously and people felt safe whilst being supported. There were enough staff to support people safely and on time, unless for reasons such as traffic. Robust procedures were followed when recruiting new staff. Risks people faced had been assessed, and their medicines were safely managed. Systems were in place to prevent and control the risk of infection.
People’s needs were assessed before they were offered a service. Staff received a range of training, although some people said more training in the use of a hoist was needed. Staff were well supported and there was an on call service, for any advice that was needed outside of office hours. People received support with meal preparation, as detailed in their care plan.
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.
People and their relatives were complimentary about the staff. They said they were kind, caring and respectful. People were encouraged to make decisions about their support and their rights to privacy, dignity and independence were promoted.
People were supported by staff who knew them well and attention was given to their communication needs. Each person had a care plan, although some of the information was limited in detail. People’s daily records were also task orientated rather than being person-centred. People were happy with their support, and knew how to raise a concern if needed. The service was able to provide palliative care, although no one required this type of care at the time of the inspection.
The registered manager was passionate about the service and there was a positive culture. Staff had adopted this passion and were complimentary about the registered manager. Systems were in place to enable people, their relatives and staff to give their views about the service. Their feedback was taken seriously and used to improve the service. An auditing system was in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service.
We have made two recommendations about the clarity of information within people’s care plans and additional staff training regarding the hoists people use.
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 16 October 20201 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.