The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has raised the rating for Helen and Douglas House from good to outstanding following an inspection in July.
Helen and Douglas House provides supportive stays, symptom management, end-of-life care and counselling and bereavement services to children, young people and their families.
Following this inspection, as well as the overall rating improving from good to outstanding, so did the ratings for how caring and well-led it is. It was again rated good for being safe, effective, and responsive.
Roger James, CQC deputy director for the south, said:
When we inspected Helen and Douglas House, we found a service where staff were very knowledgeable about the children and young people they looked after. They knew how to support children, young people and their families in an individual, personalised way and this was reflected in the level of detail in people's care plans.
The service was leading the way nationally in educating third parties on the complex needs of paediatric palliative care. Leaders encouraged innovation and staff participation in research. We saw some staff were on numerous boards that led to the implementation of guidance and legislation and were members of national committees relating to the paediatric palliative care.
This was supported by a skilled leadership team, who led by example to promote an open and person-centred culture. We saw numerous examples of staff going the extra mile, especially regarding make-a-wish requests. For example, staff arranged for llamas to be brought into the garden where a child or young person and their family were able to walk and feed them. Staff set up a fair ground including rides, in the grounds. Children’s television characters and presenters as well as famous footballers have also attended the site.
The team at Helen and Douglas House should be really proud of the care they’re providing. Other service providers should look at this report to see if there’s anything they can learn about supporting people during such a difficult time in their lives.
Inspectors found:
- The service met the needs of all children and young people who used the service – including those with protected characteristics.
- All children and young people had a personalised fire evacuation plan, staff were aware of these and knew their responsibilities in the event of a fire.
- Children and young people received pain relief soon after requesting it. Inspectors saw staff regularly checking pain levels of the children.
- When things went wrong, staff documented incidents well and the service learned from them to improve people’s care in future.
- Staff understood and respected the personal, cultural, social and religious needs of children, young people and their families and how they may relate to care needs.