We carried out a review of the data available to us about Kent Enablement at Home on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Kent Enablement at Home, you can give feedback on this service.
Kent Enablement at Home is a domiciliary care agency that provides intensive and short-term support to people in their own homes. The Enablement Team provides support that aims to encourage and support people to lead as independent life as possible. This maybe following an accident or a stay in hospital. There were 86 people using the service at the time of our inspection.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People spoke positively about the service they received saying the staff had supported them to increase their skills and independence. People were at the centre of their care and support and developed outcomes and goals that were worked towards and eventually achieved. People told us they would recommend the agency to others. Comments from people included, “They are wonderful, and I am very, very grateful that I can have them” and “They are caring and kind, I don’t know what I would have done without them.”
People’s safety had been closely monitored with guidance in place for staff to follow to reduce potential risks. People were promptly referred to other healthcare agencies for support if a risk was identified. Staff understood the potential signs of abuse and knew what action to take if they had suspicions.
There were enough staff available to meet people’s needs. Staff were recruited safely to minimise the risk of unsuitable staff working with people. People received their medicines as prescribed by their GP.
Staff received the training, skills and support to meet people’s needs. New staff completed a robust induction process. Staff felt there was an open culture where they were kept informed about any changes in people’s needs.
Weekly meetings discussed people’s progress and whether any additional support was required from health care professionals. Staff worked alongside people to build their skills, knowledge and confidence to life as independently as possible.
Staff were kind, caring and friendly towards people; promoting their privacy and dignity at all times. People were asked for their views about the service they received and were encouraged to make suggestions for improvements.
Systems were in place to respond quickly to any changes in people’s health needs. There was a joint working partnership with other health agencies to ensure people received the appropriate support quickly.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
Regular quality monitoring was in place to measure the effectiveness of the service.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection: The last rating for this service was Good (published 23 November 2016). At this inspection we found the service continued to be Good.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.
We gave the provider 48 hours’ notice of our intention to undertake an inspection. This was because the organisation provides a domiciliary care service to people in their homes and or the family home; we needed to be sure that someone would be available at the office.
Kent Enablement at Home (KEaH) is part of the Social Care, Health and Wellbeing Directorate of Kent County Council. It is the in-house provider for support at home for older people and adults with a physical disability. The service has been designed for people who need support to regain their independence after a medical or social crisis. The service provides time limited support to people in their own home, for a period of three weeks initially. The service supports people who have been discharged from hospital, or those referred who live in their own home. Support provided includes help with day to day tasks like cooking, shopping, washing and dressing and help to maintain their health and wellbeing. There were 107 people using the service at the time of our inspection, living in the areas of Ashford and Shepway and surrounding areas. People were funded through Kent County Council Social Services.
There was a registered manager for this service. He was also the operations manager of the service and covered the five registered locations, providing a similar service in other areas of Kent. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered providers and registered managers are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People we spoke with said being supported by this service improved their safety. Staff we spoke with recognised the different types of abuse. There were systems in place to guide staff in reporting any concerns. Staff were knowledgeable about how to manage people’s individual risks, and were able to respond to people's needs. When needed people were supported to receive their medicines by staff that were trained and knew about the risks associated with them.
Staff had up to date knowledge and training to support people. They always ensured people gave their consent to the support they received. The management team regularly reviewed how people were supported to make decisions. People were supported to eat and drink well, when identified as part of their care planning. They explained that they were supported to make their own decisions and be as independent as they could. People and their relatives told us staff would access health professionals as soon as they were needed. We saw there was effective communication with people, staff and health care professionals which improved people’s well-being.
People and their relatives told us that being supported by this service made a difference to their lives. They said the staff were caring and always treated them with dignity and respect. Relatives told us they were involved as part of the team to support their family member.
People and their relatives knew how to raise complaints and the management team had arrangements in place to ensure people were listened to and appropriate action taken. Staff were involved in regular meetings, training and one to one’s to share their views and concerns about the quality of the service. Staff said the management team were accessible and supportive to them. The support provided was adaptable to changes in peoples’ needs and changes were communicated to staff effectively.
The management team monitored the quality of the service in an inclusive way. The registered manager ensured there was a culture of openness and inclusion for people using the service and staff. The management team had systems in place to identify improvements and action them in a timely way.