Quality Home Care Anglia Ltd

Updated 15 February 2019

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This announced inspection visit took place on 10 January 2019. We informed the registered manager of the inspection four days before we visited the office. This was to give them time to contact people using the service, their relatives, and staff, to inform them that we may contact them by telephone for feedback on the service. The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used this information to assist with planning the inspection but took into account that this information was a year old.

We also reviewed information that we held about the service. We had not received any notifications since the location was added to the provider’s registration. Notifications are reports of events that happen in the service that the provider is required to tell us about. We also contacted commissioners who had a contract with the service and Healthwatch Cambridge.

During our inspection visit we spoke to the registered manager, two care managers, an area manager, a care assessor and a care worker. We looked three people’s care records, and records relevant to the running of the service. These included quality assurance audits, staff training and recruitment information and arrangements for managing complaints.

On 11 January 2019 we spoke on the telephone with four people who use the service, three people’s relatives and two care workers. On 15 January 2019 we received feedback via email from a commissioner and an external healthcare professional.

Updated 15 February 2019

Quality Home Care Anglia Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in Huntingdon, Cambridge, Bury St Edmunds, Haverhill and Saffron Walden. It provides a service to both older and younger adults.

This is the first inspection of this service since the agency office moved in June 2018. This announced inspection took place on 10 and 11 January 2019. There were 80 people receiving the regulated activity of personal care during this inspection.

There was a registered manager in post. 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 were protected from avoidable harm by a staff team trained and confident to recognise and report any concerns. Staff assessed and minimised potential risks to people. Staff were only employed after satisfactory pre-employment checks had been obtained. There were enough staff to ensure people’s needs were met safely and in a timely manner.

People were supported to manage their prescribed medicines by staff who were trained and had been assessed as competent to administer medicines. Staff followed the provider’s procedures to prevent the spread of infection and reduce the risk of cross contamination.

Staff knew the people they cared for well and understood, and met, their needs. People received care from staff who were trained and well supported to meet people’s assessed needs. Staff had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s assessed needs.

People were supported by staff to have enough to eat and drink. People were assisted to have access to external healthcare services to help maintain their health and well-being. Staff followed guidance put in place by external healthcare professionals to improve people’s physical health.

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. People were fully involved in making decisions about their care and support. People and their relatives were involved in the setting up and review of their or their family member’s individual support and care plans.

Staff treated people kindly and made people feel that they mattered. Staff respected and promoted people’s privacy, dignity and independence.

Staff assessed people’s individual needs and used this information to deliver personalised care that met that met people’s needs. Staff supported people to have the most comfortable, dignified, and pain-free a death as possible. Staff worked in partnership with other professionals to ensure that people received care that met their needs.

Staff liked working for the service. They were clear about their role to provide people with a high-quality service.

People’s suggestions and complaints were listened to, investigated, and acted upon to reduce the risk of recurrence. The registered manager sought people’s feedback about the quality of the service they provided. Audits and quality monitoring checks were carried out and help to drive forward improvements.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.