23 and 28 July 2015
During a routine inspection
This announced inspection took place on 23 and 28 July 2015. We gave the registered manager 48 hours notice of the inspection. This was because the organisation provides a domiciliary care service to people who live in their homes or a family members home and we needed to be sure someone would be available at the office.
The provider registered this service with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide personal care and support for people with a range of varying needs including people who were living with dementia. People either lived in the own home or with a relative or friend. At the time of this inspection the agency was providing personal care to about 118 people. This included the provision of a service to a small number of children.
There was a registered manager for this service who was available throughout the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the service is run.
People and their relatives told us they had no concerns about the service provided and people felt safe with the care staff. Care staff and office staff had an awareness of different types of abuse and were aware of their responsibility to report any concerns they had. People told us care staff were kind and caring and treated them with respect and upheld their privacy and dignity. Care staff were aware of the need to gain people’s consent prior to providing care and support.
We found some staff did not have a good command of the English language and for some people who used the service this had created difficulties because they had not been able to make themselves clearly understood. Although the registered manager was aware of these difficulties and had commenced steps to assist care staff in their learning, the issues for people who used the service remained.
Care staff confirmed they received training in order to meet people’s care needs. Care staff received support from the management as needed to assist them do their work. Care plans and risk assessments were regularly reviewed to provide care staff with up dated information about people’s needs and associated risks.
People and their relatives were aware of how they could raise any concerns or complaints about the service provided. People were listened to and their concerns investigated and acted upon.
Care staff received one to one meetings with a supervisor and spot checks took place to make sure the care they provided met the needs of people they were caring for. Systems were in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided. However, systems to ensure call times were correct and accurate were not always effective. The registered manager had sought feedback from people, their families and staff members as a means of improvement to the service.