Archived: Definitive Care Services

We visited the offices of Definitive Care on 6 April 2016. We told the provider before the visit we were coming so they could arrange to be available to talk with us about the service.

The service has a registered manager. 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 felt safe using the service and staff understood how to protect people from abuse and keep people safe. There were procedures to manage identified risks with people’s care and for managing people’s medicines safely. Checks were carried out on staff during recruitment to make sure they were suitable to work with people who used the service.

The provider understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA), and staff respected people’s decisions and gained people’s consent before they provided personal care.

There were enough staff to deliver the care and support people required. People told us staff were friendly and caring and had the right skills to provide the care and support they required. Staff received an induction when they started working for the service and completed training to support them in meeting people’s needs effectively.

Care plans contained relevant information for staff to help them provide the personalised care people required. People knew how to complain and information about making a complaint was available to them. Staff said they could raise any concerns or issues with the provider and registered manager, knowing they would be listened to and acted on.

There were processes to monitor the quality of the service provided and understand the experiences of people who used the service. This was through regular communication with people and staff, returned surveys, spot checks on care staff and a programme of other checks and audits.

We looked at the care records for all the people who used the service. We were satisfied people were receiving the care they needed and had consented to. We found care plans provided staff with sufficient information about the care and support people required.

People said they were visited before the service started and an assessment was completed. One person told us, 'The manager visited me, she was marvellous. She listened to me and explained everything very clearly.'

People told us care staff stayed long enough to do everything they needed and that staff took their time and did not rush. People said care workers were polite and caring. One person said, 'They (the care workers) are extremely polite, we think they are great. Nothing is ever too much trouble.'

We looked at the medication and recruitment procedures. We found there was a safe procedure for assisting people with medication. Records showed staff had been properly checked before they started working for the agency. The procedures in place made sure people remained safe and well.

Records showed the agency had systems in place to monitor the care provided and for managing identified risks. People told us they were satisfied with the care they received. One person told us, 'This agency has been great, they are like friends. We are so relieved; we know x is being looked after well.'