The Care Quality Commission has rated Assist Care Group - Surrey as outstanding following an inspection in August.
Assist Care Group - Surrey, run by an organisation of the same name, is a home care agency which provides care and support to people living in their own homes. The service supports adults of all ages, including people living with dementia, physical and sensory impairment, autistic people and people with a learning disability.
There were 37 people receiving support at the time of the inspection, which CQC carried out as part of its continual monitoring of health and social care services.
CQC has upgraded caring and well led from good to outstanding. Safe, responsive and effective were again rated good.
Amy Jupp, CQC’s deputy director for adult social care in Surrey, said:
It was clear when we visited Assist Care Group Surrey that it was a service built on a dedication to treating people as individuals. One manager told us they wanted everyone working there to consider whether what they were doing would be good enough for their own loved one, and we saw how this approach filtered through to the highly compassionate and individualised care people received.
For example, one person told inspectors that staff had comforted them when they needed it most, while they waited for an ambulance after suffering a stroke. Likewise, a relative of someone else explained that when their loved one was discharged late at night from hospital, the service had arranged to have a carer waiting for them to ensure they were safe and comfortable.
Staff spoke with pride about the service’s values and how they reflected these in their day-to-day work. There was a clear emphasis on what each individual needed and preferred, rather than on the tasks to be completed. One person explained that she appreciated staff maintaining her dignity and treating her like an adult by closing the door when she was in the shower.
Another key strength that was clear to inspectors was that staff and leaders responded quickly and appropriately to any changes in people’s needs or wellbeing.
One relative told us staff liaised with district nurses and the GP when their loved one’s needs changed and made sure to get their updated medications from the chemist immediately.
This report reflects the very high standard of care people were receiving from Assist Care Group - Surrey and other services can look to it to see what outstanding looks like in a home care setting.
Inspectors found:
- Leaders valued their staff and put measures in place to ensure they felt supported. This resulted in high staff retention, with the average length of service being seven years, and meant people had consistent care from a staff team who knew them well.
- The service had robust safeguarding procedures in place, so staff knew how to raise concerns if someone was at risk of abuse or avoidable harm. Relatives and other professionals said the service kept people safe.
- Leaders monitored the day-to-day activity and performance of the service to drive improvements. For example, when they saw there had been an increase in the number of falls reported, they asked care staff for their views on potential reasons for this and worked with them to make changes to keep people safe.
- The service ensured staff had a support team available that they could contact to raise any concerns while they were supporting people in the community. This meant incidents such as changes in condition were addressed in real time and people received the support they needed without delay.
The Assist Care Group - Surrey report will be published on our website in the coming days.