Harmony Homecare Suffolk

Harmony Homecare Suffolk is a domiciliary care service providing care to people in their own homes. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive a regulated activity of personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating.

Where they do receive personal care, we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of inspection, Harmony Homecare Suffolk covered geographical areas in Cambridgeshire and Suffolk and provided a service to 82 people of which 81 people received personal care.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People and their relatives were complimentary about the service Harmony Homecare Suffolk provided and would recommend the service. The management worked in partnership with people, relatives and other professionals to achieve individualised, person-centred care.

People were supported by a safely recruited staff team who had the relevant training and qualifications to safely meet their needs Overall, people received their care calls at the times they expected, for the length of time agreed and from care staff they knew. However, we were told of some inconsistencies with the co-ordination of some care calls and communication issues where people were not told of changes in a timely manner. The management were taking steps to address this.

Staff had received safeguarding training and knew how to protect people from potential harm. Safeguarding policies and processes were in place.

Medicines and risks associated with people’s care was in line with legislative requirements and recognised best practice guidelines. Staff followed good infection prevention and control practices to keep people and themselves safe.

Staff understood the importance of gaining consent from people. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and care staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People's care plans promoted choice and guided staff on how to support people safely and encourage their independence. They included information on what was important to people including their preferences and interests.

People and relatives felt able to raise any issues with the staff and management team and were confident these would be addressed. Staff felt supported and valued in their role by the management team.

Effective systems to monitor the quality and safety of the service were in place.

Rating at last inspection

The service was registered with us on 11 November 2020. This is their first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned comprehensive inspection.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk