Michael Batt Foundation Domiciliary Care Services

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• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

The service listened to peoples wants and needs and put these into actions to improve people’s quality of life. The registered manager and provider understood people’s individual needs and preferences. Staff we spoke with were aware of people’s communications needs and personal preferences and we observed staff following the communication guidance in peoples care plans.

This service scored 65 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

We did not look at Kindness, compassion and dignity during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

At the last inspection the provider failed to treat people with dignity and respect at all times. At this assessment the provider had improved. The language used in care records, and by staff, was respectful and demonstrated the actions they had taken to listen to peoples wants and needs and put these into actions to improve people quality of life experiences. For example, one person had requested to have their ears pierced, staff worked with the person to ensure that this could happen. This meant the persons individual needs and preferences were understood and these were reflected in the persons care, treatment and support. We observed staff following one person’s assessed communication needs plan, to ensure the persons care and support outcomes were maximised.

The registered manager and provider understood people’s individual needs and preferences. Staff we spoke with were aware of people’s communications needs and personal preferences and we observed staff following the communication guidance in peoples care plans.

The registered manager and provider had made improvements by developing systems that were aligned with the Accessible Information Standard. The new system had been developed to support the service in identifying, recording, flagging, sharing and meeting the information and communication needs of people with a disability or sensory loss. People had communication needs assessments completed as part of the care planning process. However, although improvements have been made with regards to people having access to accessible information, the service still needs to demonstrate it can fully embed and sustain these improvements.

One person was able to inform us, through their personal communication preference, that staff supported them to have choice and control over how they spent their days. We observed staff supporting a person to go out and do their chosen activity for the day. A relative we spoke with told us of the improvements which the service had made. They told us, “As far as improvements go, I hope that they will broaden (persons) daily life and introduce new activities to (person) so they can enjoy and look forward to”.

The registered manager was able to describe how they supported people to understand their rights by using different ways of communication. The registered manager and staff ensured information regarding people's rights was available to them in an accessible format which matched their individual communication needs. Staff described how they supported people to maintain relationships and networks that were important to them. One staff member described the importance of one person’s relationship with their family and the steps they took to maximise this relationship. Staff told us and records confirmed people could receive visits from friends and family when they wanted.

Systems were in place to monitor people’s day to day activities to ensure people were receiving the quality of life that matched their preferences and needs. The registered manager and deputy manager carried out daily checks to ensure people were having their planned activities.

We did not look at Responding to people’s immediate needs during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

The registered manager and provider described how they recognised the importance of wellbeing and how this linked to delivering good quality care that had positive outcomes on people who used the service. The registered manager told us, “We need to look after our staff and recognise the hard work they do, which can be difficult and challenging at times. If we have a happy workforce this will have a positive impact on the people, we support”. A staff member we spoke with told us, “I'm happy to be part of Michael Batt Foundation”.

The provider had systems and processes in place to ensure the service was driven by a culture that normalises good wellbeing through inclusivity, active listening, and open conversations. These systems included employee recognition awards, supervision trackers, wellbeing policy, 24 hour on call staff support and individual wellbeing assessments.