Caremark (Wandsworth)

Updated 4 May 2022

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. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. This includes people with dementia, people who misuse drugs or alcohol and children.

The service did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. The manager had submitted an application to become registered. 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.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was announced and took place on 6 April 2022. The service was given 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed all the information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke in person with the manager. We contacted 14 people and their relatives, 23 staff and three health care professionals, to get their experience and views about the care provided. We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care and medicine records. We looked at six staff files in relation to recruitment, training and staff supervision. We checked a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits, policies and procedures were reviewed. We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We requested additional evidence to be sent to us after our inspection. This included staff rotas, spot checks, observations and audits. We received the information which was used as part of our inspection.

Updated 4 May 2022

About the service

Caremark Wandsworth is a domiciliary care agency providing care and support to 40 people living in their own homes and flats. At the time of the inspection 23 people using the service were receiving personal care. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. The Care Quality Commission (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

A safe service was provided for people to use and staff to work in. There were enough appropriately recruited staff to meet people’s needs. This enabled people to enjoy their lives and live safely. The provider assessed and recorded risks to people and staff, and monitored and updated them as required. Accidents, incidents and safeguarding concerns were reported, investigated and recorded appropriately. Medicines were safely administered, and people prompted to take their medicines. Shielding and social distancing guidance was followed, and Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) used safely and effectively. There was an up to date infection prevention and control policy.

The provider’s culture was open, honest, and positive with transparent leadership and management. The statement of purpose clearly defined the provider’s vision and values. Staff understood and followed the vision and values and their responsibilities and accountability. They were prepared to take responsibility and raise any concerns they may have with the provider. Service quality was regularly reviewed and changes made to improve the care and support people received accordingly. This was in a way that best suited people. The provider established effective working partnerships that promoted the needs of people being met outside its remit to reduce social isolation. Registration requirements were met.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 30 October 2018) and there were no breaches of regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

CQC has introduced focused/targeted inspections to follow up on previous breaches and to check specific concerns. We undertook a focused inspection approach to review the key questions of Safe, and Well-led.

As no concerns were identified in relation to the key questions is the service Effective, Caring and Responsive, we decided not to inspect them. Ratings from the previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service remains good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Caremark (Wandsworth) on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

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