Archived: Superior Care Maidstone

We found that there were good processes in place for people to discuss their individual care needs, and for the agency to ensure that they would be able to meet people's needs. People's care and support plans were discussed with them prior to the commencement of the delivery of the service, and they signed to show their agreement and consent.

We found that documentation clearly reflected people's needs, and the reasons for the visits. Clear guidelines were provided for staff to follow, so that they knew what support to give at each visit.

The agency liaised with other agencies such as health and social care professionals to help provide a smooth pathway between services.

We found that staff were trained in infection control and were provided with personal protective equipment to help prevent the spread of infection.

We saw that staff were appropriately trained in other mandatory subjects, and were given appropriate training to meet people's specific needs, such as challenging behaviour, or catheter care.

People's views about the service were requested at regular intervals. People generally spoke highly of the service, with comments such as: 'The staff have absolutely changed my life. I am not stressed now in trying to manage things on my own. Nothing is too much trouble for them'; and 'The staff are very pleasant and competent.' Another person said that if they had any concerns they were confident that the manager and office staff would deal with them appropriately.

We obtained people's views by reading recent questionnaire responses and comments made during telephone conversations. Some people had also given feedback to the agency's manager when she had carried out competency checks with care staff in people's homes; and when she had carried out care plan reviews. People's responses included that they were 'happy with the carers.'

The agency's quality assurance questionnaires included tick boxes about different aspects of care. The people who responded had ticked that they agreed or strongly agreed to most questions, which was a positive response.