The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Qualified Care Ltd, a domiciliary care service in Dover, inadequate and placed it into special measures to protect people, following an inspection in July.
Qualified Care Ltd is a domiciliary care service providing personal care and support to people in their own homes. At the time of the inspection the service was providing personal care to three people.
The inspection was carried out as part of CQC’s continual checks on the safety and quality of healthcare services.
Following this inspection, CQC has rated the areas of safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led as inadequate. Inspectors found six breaches of regulation relating to person centred care, safe care and treatment, safeguarding people from abuse and improper treatment, good management, staffing and failure to submit notifications of incidents.
CQC has imposed urgent conditions on Qualified Care Ltd, directing the provider to make immediate improvements to keep people safe. These conditions stop the service from supporting some people and stop it from accepting new care packages without CQC’s consent and require leaders to take swift action to improve staffing and strengthen systems so that people receive safe care.
CQC has also placed the service into special measures which involves close monitoring to ensure people are safe while they make improvements. Special measures also provides a structured timeframe so services understand when they need to make improvements by, and what action CQC will take if this doesn’t happen.
Serena Coleman, CQC deputy director of operations in Kent, said:
“During our inspection of Qualified Care Ltd, we found unsafe staffing, poor leadership and a lack of oversight were putting people at serious risk of harm.
“Leaders failed to make sure people received safe care. Staff were working up to 20 hours a day for as many as 10 days in a row without breaks. This left them exhausted and unable to support people safely. One person who was at risk of falls and taking anti-clotting medicine suffered a fall, yet staff didn’t call 999 or 111 to seek urgent medical advice. This person faced a significantly increased risk of internal bleeding, but there was no guidance for staff on how to keep them safe. Leaders ignored the danger and left people at continued risk of serious harm.
“Leaders did not know the health needs of the people they supported. They failed to complete robust assessments before taking on new people, and staff had no information about how to respond if someone became unwell. People living with diabetes, heart conditions and dementia did not have care plans that reflected their needs, meaning staff were working without the information they needed to keep people safe.
“People were exposed to repeated risks because leaders didn’t learn from incidents. People fell frequently, but care plans contained no analysis of causes or actions to reduce future risks. Even when staff raised concerns, leaders ignored them. This showed a culture that failed to protect people and failed to value staff who were trying to raise safety issues.
“The standard of care we saw at this service is completely unacceptable. People were living at daily risk of avoidable harm because leaders failed to provide safe staffing, proper training, and oversight. Without immediate improvement, people remain at serious risk.”
Inspectors found:
- Leaders failed to act when people fell, even when serious health risks like diabetes or anti-clotting medication made incidents life-threatening.
- Staff administered medicines, including controlled drugs, without training or checks to confirm they were competent.
- Care plans contained little or no information about people’s health conditions, leaving staff unable to meet their needs safely.
- Leaders failed to notify safeguarding bodies of incidents, ignoring their legal duties and leaving people exposed to further harm.
The report will be published on CQC’s website in the coming days.