Archived: Care Avenues Limited

Updated 14 February 2017

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.

We conducted a comprehensive announced inspection of this service on 13 December 2016. The registered provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the location provides personal care to people in their own homes and we needed to ensure care records were available for review had we required them. The inspection team consisted of one inspector. We were also supported by an expert by experience who spoke on the telephone to some people who used the service and their relatives. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of service.

As part of planning the inspection we reviewed information we held about the service, including the notifications we received from the provider. These contain details of events and incidents the provider is required to notify us about by law, including unexpected deaths and injuries occurring to people receiving care. We also asked a local authority who commissions packages of care from the service for their views. We used this information to plan areas to focus on during our inspection visit.

We visited the registered provider’s office and spoke with the provider’s nominated individual, registered manager, operations manager, two care co-ordinators, human resources manager and four care staff. We sampled the records, including five people’s care plans, two staffing records, medication, training, complaints and quality monitoring. We reviewed the registered provider’s system for monitoring that calls times were in line with people’s care needs and wishes.

After our visit we spoke with seven people who use the service and the relatives of six other people using the service to obtain their views of the quality of support people received. We also spoke to a social worker who was investigating some concerns a person had raised about the service.

Updated 14 February 2017

This inspection took place on 13 December 2016 and was announced. At our last inspection in June 2016 the service was compliant with all the regulations we looked at. We found however that further improvement was required to improve how the provider managed risks to people, assessed people’s mental capacity and reviewed the quality of the service. At this latest inspection we found the provider had taken action to address these concerns.

Care Avenues provides personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection the service was supporting 103 people.

There was a registered manager in place who was present during our inspection. 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 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

The provider had taken effective action to address the concerns form our last inspection. This included improving recruitment processes, risk assessments, mental capacity assessments and quality monitoring.

People told us that they felt safe. Staff knew how to report allegations or suspicions of poor practice and recognise when people were becoming unwell.

People who needed prompting with their medicines were supported appropriately. Staff knew how to dispense medicines safely and there was regular training to make sure this was done properly.

People were supported by staff who had the appropriate skills and knowledge they needed to meet their care needs. Staff knew and respected people’s cultural needs and heritage.

People received care in line with their care plans. People were supported to eat and drink enough to stay well and staff assisted people to eat meals safely. The registered manager sought and took advice from relevant health professionals when necessary.

People were supported by regular staff with whom they had developed meaningful relationships. Staff knew how to treat people with dignity and respect.

Staff were knowledgeable about people’s preferences and provided care in line with their wishes. People were involved in deciding how they wanted their care to be delivered in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The registered manger took effective action when people’s conditions changed to ensure they continued to receive the appropriate support. People had access to a complaints system and the registered manager responded appropriately to concerns.

People who used the service and staff expressed confidence in the leadership of the senior team. The registered manager had a clear vision of the service which they shared with staff and they understood their responsibilities to the Commission.

The registered manager assessed and monitored the quality of care and operated a robust system to ensure people received their calls on time.