People's Choice UK

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• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

As part of this assessment, we looked at 2 quality statements for the key question of effective. These were ‘assessing needs and consent to care and treatment.’ People’s needs, preferences and choices were assessed prior to them receiving support and treatment. The provider carried out a comprehensive assessment with people and their relatives to ensure they could meet their needs. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People’s needs were assessed before care was delivered. Assessments were comprehensive and detailed all aspects of people’s health and social care. The information from people’s initial assessment was then used to develop the person’s care plan and risk assessments. People told us they had been involved in their care from the start. A relative told us, “Yes, my [relative] and I were involved in my [family members] care. We have an excellent system and are very much involved. We all work together and it’s all very well organised.”

Staff knew people well and told us they spent time reading people’s care records before they undertook any tasks. One said, “Management is constantly updating us with information about clients such as when an Occupational Therapist (OT) will be visiting. We also have good communication with the office who inform us about updates, and we also contact the office frequently to report about clients. If I get important information about a client, I can relay the information effectively. The assistant manager explained about the assessment process. “During the initial assessment we collect information regarding the clients’ current needs. If a client’s needs change, the carers will call me directly or call the office to inform of their current needs. Clients and their family or advocates also call to inform of their current needs. All clients and their family or advocates are informed at service commencement that they have 24/7 accesses to management via phone call, in which many have mentioned has given them reassurance knowing they can call whenever they feel they need to. We also conduct review summaries to ensure that clients’ needs are continuously assessed and updated.”

People received regular assessments of their needs, and their choices were considered to ensure they were provided with the support and treatment they needed and wanted. The assessment tool was detailed and considered people's culture, past experiences, physical, psychological and social needs. Changes were made as necessary following regular reviews of people’s care. For example, for some people this had resulted in an increase in their care needs, which was agreed with the person, their family and the multidisciplinary teams.

We did not look at Delivering evidence-based care and treatment during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

We did not look at How staff, teams and services work together during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

We did not look at Supporting people to live healthier lives during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

We did not look at Monitoring and improving outcomes during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Effective.

People and relatives confirmed that staff always sought their consent before providing any care tasks. A relative told us, “[Family member] is extremely well looked after and always asked for their consent and very well respected by the carers.” A second relative confirmed, “They always ask for my [family members] consent before doing anything. They are all very respectful.”

Staff told us, and records confirmed they received Mental Capacity Act (MCA) training as part of their individual training schedule. The staff demonstrated they fully understood and practiced the MCA principles. One staff member told us, “I always ask people for their permission and agreement before I do anything. If they decline, I will always respect their decisions.” A second member of staff confirmed they received training in relation to the MCA. They told us, “Mental Capacity was part of the care certificate training I did. Management is very strict about completing it.”

Staff had received training and had a good understanding of the principles of the MCA. The registered manager was aware of the process to follow to make formal decisions in people's best interests if needed. People’s capacity to make decisions about aspects of their care was detailed in their care plans. These described how people needed to be supported to make informed choices and decisions as much as they could for themselves.