Archived: Diamond Quality Care Services

Updated 12 July 2018

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 was a comprehensive inspection which took place on 25 May 2018. It was carried out by one inspector. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because the location provides a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure the right people were available to assist with the inspection.

The service had submitted a provider information return (PIR), in December 2017. 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 looked at the information provided in the PIR and used this to help us plan the inspection.

Prior to the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service. This included any notifications that we received. Notifications are reports of events the provider is required by law to inform us about. We contacted three representatives of the local authority who funded people supported by the service, for their feedback and received no concerns.

During the inspection we spoke with the registered manager, the outreach manager and two other staff. We examined a sample of five care plans and other documents relating to people’s care. We looked at a sample of other records to do with the operation of the service, including, training and supervision records and medicines recording. Following the inspection we spoke with three further staff and six people receiving support from the service to obtain their views.

Updated 12 July 2018

Care service description

Diamond Quality Care is a reablement service for people who have experienced acquired brain injury or strokes. It provides a domiciliary care service for ten people in addition to other services which are not subject to regulation by the Care Quality Commission.

Rating at last inspection

At our last inspection we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

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Why the service is rated good

People were kept safe because potential risks to them had been assessed and action taken to mitigate them whilst still enabling them to experience a fulfilling lifestyle. Staff understood how to keep people safe and the service responded appropriately when any concerns arose.

The service had a robust recruitment procedure to ensure, as far as possible, that staff appointed had the right skills and approach to support people.

Staff retention was good, enabling people to build trusting relationships with staff. People were supported by staff who received regular training and ongoing support through quarterly supervision and annual appraisal.

People’s rights, privacy and dignity were supported and maintained by staff in the way they worked with them. 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. Staff treated people with kindness and patience and encouraged them to do as much for themselves as possible and consistent with the service’s reablement approach.

People’s needs were discussed with them and they were fully involved in agreeing their care plan and how support was to be provided. People were also involved in care plan reviews. They had the opportunity to take part in a range of social and therapeutic activities provided at the service’s headquarters as part of the support available to them.

The headquarters premises had been designed to promote accessibility and inclusion and a range of adaptations and equipment was used to maximise people’s access to the facilities. The service complied with the Accessible Information Standard, to ensure documents were in a format accessible to people receiving support.

The service was well managed by an experienced team who communicated the service’s values effectively to staff and others. Effective governance meant the service was monitored and any lessons from incidents or events were learned.

People’s views were sought regularly and acted upon to develop the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below