Yourlife (Swindon)

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• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

We assessed 6 quality statements in relation to assessing needs, delivering evidence-based care and treatment, how staff and teams work together, supporting people to live healthier lives, monitoring and improving outcomes and consent to care and treatment. There was evidence of staff and leaders working with professionals in the community to ensure people received the support needed. Detailed guidance was provided to people on the service delivery. Teams worked well together on behalf of people. People’s care records demonstrated that professionals had been involved in their care and support. Staff showed a good understanding of gaining ongoing verbal consent from people. Care plans had signed consent from people and there were policies to support the service being effective.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People told us they had their needs assessed before support commenced and staff had a good understanding of their needs. One person told us “My brother did that at the beginning for me when I came here from hospital.”

Leaders told us they completed a new assessment for anyone who accessed the service. They explained how information was gathered from people, relatives and professionals working with the person.

Care plans and risk assessments guided staff to provide safe care and treatment for people. Records were recorded accurately and the service made sure people’s care and treatment was effective by regularly assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

People told us the service planned and delivered their care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. For example, they told us management completed regular reviews of their care needs.

Staff and leaders told us they worked with providers in the community to ensure care was planned for people.

The service had evidence-based tools embedded into their care plans for example documents related to people’s specific needs. Care plans provided detailed information to staff in relation to nationally recognised evidence-based guidance which were regularly reviewed and audited.

People told us the service worked well across all teams to support people. They found the communication with staff and the provider to be “very good.”

Staff told us they enjoyed working for the service and colleagues at all levels were very supportive. They told us how everyone works together to ensure people needs were met. Staff would come from other local services managed by the provider to help them when needed.

Partners provided positive feedback about the staff and community teams working together. One partner agency told us “I think they work well together; they are all onsite, so staff and management have good communication.”

There were processes in place to support effective team working. For example, staff were allowed extra time before their shift started to review any recent changes for people. There were regular team meetings which staff attended. The manager facilitated meetings in person and online to ensure everyone was included.

People told us they were able to access health services, with support from staff and relatives when needed. One person told us staff had encouraged them to eat healthier and more recently had helped to arrange for them to have 1 meal a day delivered to help manage an ongoing health condition.

Staff told us they encouraged people to manage their own health and would support people to access local healthcare professionals when needed. Leaders told us they worked with various health professionals to help people live healthier lives.

People’s care records demonstrated professionals were involved in their care and support. There was evidence of people being supported to access relevant health services.

People and relatives told us they had been involved in setting up and reviewing care plans and risk assessments. We observed people had access to their information in their homes via a file folder kept in their rooms.

Staff told us they monitored people on a regular basis and if anything changed, they would let management know so this could be followed up. Leaders said they acted on any information provided to them by staff and kept a record of changes made.

The service routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. For example, reviews took place when things changed for a person. There were audits of care plans and risk assessments taking place with identified actions being followed up. For example, an audit of care plans identified the service needed to discuss with a person about planning for future. On reviewing the care plans for people using the service, we saw the discussion had taken place and there was one person who had refused to consent on planning for the future.

People told us staff asked for their consent and were respectful in their home environments. Everyone being supported by the service had capacity to make their own decisions.

Feedback from staff showed a good understanding of gaining ongoing verbal consent from people. One staff member commented “I ask, if I can come into their home, what they would like me to do and if it’s ok to start their care.”

The provider had an effective process in place for seeking consent from people. We reviewed consent forms relating to 3 people which had been appropriately documented and signed by the person it applied to. There was a consent policy in place.