ASK4CARE - Huddersfield

On this page

• 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

People needs were assessed comprehensively from the outset, and at intervals whilst using the service. They experienced good health and wellbeing outcomes thanks to the consistent and considered approach of staff, who worked well with each other, and alongside external health and social care professionals. Staff respected people’s right to choose and had a good understanding of the importance of consent and involving people in their care planning. The service was well respected by a range of external health and social care professionals.

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.

Staff helped people with a range of day to day tasks to help them maintain their independence. People experienced helpful, proactive support from staff who understood and acted on their needs. One relative said, “The carers help [person] with ringing the district nurse when needed. They are catheterised now and the carers empty it. They are very prone to urine infections but has been free from them since ASK4CARE took over.”

The registered manager worked well with staff, relatives and external partners to ensure people’s needs were understood and met. Staff proactively advocated for people to ensure they got the healthcare they needed, when they needed it. Staff confirmed they had ready access to information about people’s care needs. External partners gave consistently positive feedback about how well staff assessed people’s needs, and the fact this had a positive impact on people’s heath and wellbeing. One said, “Staff have built up relationships with clients and learned their style of communicating. Training is undertaken where needed. Speech and Language referrals are made when needed and communication plans are put in place.”

People’s care needs were regularly reviewed, through staff reviewing care records and through multi-disciplinary meetings with external clinicians. The provider was in the process of moving from an older care planning approach to a revised/streamlined approach. The latter was more user friendly and accessible. The registered manager was responsive to our feedback.

People had confidence in the knowledge of staff and attributed some of this to how well staff got to know people. They gave examples of staff acting on guidance from district nurses, for instance to apply creams and reduce the risks of pressure sores.

Staff received the training and support they needed to help people live full lives. Staff were training to achieve ‘Train the Trainer’ qualifications so they could deliver more in-house training. The current training was a blend of e-learning and face to face learning. The registered manager was proactive about seeking out additional learning opportunities for staff, and responsive to feedback. One staff member said, “I can’t fault the shadowing and the induction. I’ve worked for care companies in the past and didn’t get a proper induction with them. When I need help, I will ask.”

The provider ensured they had the most up to date and relevant information from other health and social care professionals to ensure they could deliver the right evidence-based care. Where there were gaps in information, they liaised well with a range of partners and were linked in with forums that shared good practice.

People told us staff worked together well. They confirmed information was handed over effectively, so there were rarely instances where staff were unsure of what needed to happen on a call. People confirmed staff arrived on time and together if they were working as a pair.

Staff had the confidence to work with external professionals when needed and were empowered to do so by the registered manager. Staff had access to contact numbers for relevant healthcare professionals if they were needed and gave examples of how and when they would seek support from, for instance, district nursing teams. The registered manager was proactive in seeking support and expertise from outside sources.

External partners gave positive feedback about how well staff worked with them, and how they worked as an effective team to meet people’s needs. One external professional told us, “They have always sought advice if they were unsure of the best way forward.” Commissioning and safeguarding partners raised no concerns about the service, and confirmed they worked openly and collaboratively.

The service had recently become part of a winter pressures scheme, enabling people to leave hospital when fit to do so, and where they were awaiting a more comprehensive package of care. The service was well placed to do this as it was trusted by health and social care partners, and people who used the service. There were well established relationships with a range of relevant healthcare professionals and mutual understanding of how the service could best work with them.

People gave examples of how staff encouraged them to make healthy food choices. One said, “They cook me bacon and eggs and heat up food for me. I’m on the Atkins diet. It’s low carbohydrate so as to lose weight. Sometimes I’ll drink water or orange juice. The carers check that I’m OK.” One relative said, “The carers do keep an eye on hydration – they know it’s important.” People and relatives felt staff made a positive impact on their health and wellbeing. One relative said, “[Person] can feed themselves now and drink, which they couldn’t do before. Everything is fitted to what they can do. They have really come on and improved remarkably.”

Staff understood the importance of people’s individualities and supporting people’s choices. They encouraged healthier options where practicable and provided people with emotional support.

Care plans and records contained a good level of information about people’s lifestyle choices and needs. The registered manager was reviewing these documents to ensure they were a blend of detailed content and easier to access shorter formats.

Partners confirmed they could always access the information they needed when visiting, and people’s care records were up to date. One external professional told us, “Staff have regular meetings where they go through any changes to clients needs and any appropriate training is offered. Detailed care plans are kept up to date for each client.”

Staff were able to access and update care records. The provider has recently moved to electronic care records and staff were positive about this. Staff we spoke with understood the benefits it could bring in terms of time saving and reduced risk. Partners confirmed they could always access the information they needed when visiting, and people’s care records were up to date. One external professional told us, “Staff have regular meetings where they go through any changes to clients needs and any appropriate training is offered. Detailed care plans are kept up to date for each client.”

The provider’s electronic records system allowed for real time access to people’s records and for the simplification of some tasks for care staff.

People confirmed they were supported to choose and that their right to do so was respected. Staff valued people’s individuality and understood people’s varying levels of independence. One relative told us, “They do ask consent first. They are skilled at working politely with older people.” Another said, “They ask first, all the time – it’s just good manners.”

Staff understood the importance of consent and this informed each care call. They sought people’s consent at each task. They worked well with people and their families, assuming capacity in the first place. Some staff member’s understanding of best interests decision-making could be refreshed. We fed this back to the registered manager who took appropriate action and liaised with external professionals to ensure learning was refreshed.

The MCA policy was up to date and informed by good practice, for instance assuming capacity from the outset and undertaking reviews where a person’s capacity may have changed. There was mandatory training in place regarding consent and capacity.