Unicare Devon

Updated 4 April 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Notice of inspection

We gave a short period notice of the inspection because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 28 February 2020 and ended on 12 March 2020. We visited the office location on 28 February 2020 and we visited three people in their homes on 4 March 2020. We spoke with care workers and people who used the service on the telephone on 12 March 2020.

What we did before the inspection

Prior to the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service and notifications we had received. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law.

The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return (PIR) prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. They had completed a PIR before the last inspection, and some of the information was still relevant to this inspection.

During the inspection-

We visited three people in their homes to find out about the service they received. We also spoke with four people who used the service on the telephone. We spoke with the registered manager, two providers and three members of office staff. We met one member of the care staff team who also had responsibility for training staff. We spoke with nine care workers on the telephone. We also met one health professional during our visits to people.

We reviewed three people’s care files, three staff files, and records relating to the management of the service.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 4 April 2020

About the service

Unicare Devon is a domiciliary care service. At the time of this inspection they provided personal care to 80 people.

Not everyone using the service received a regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also take into account any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Since the last inspection there had been a number of changes and improvements to the service. A new registered manager had been appointed and they were supported by a new office-based team. At the last inspection we found there were some aspects of the service that were not fully safe, effective, responsive or well-led. At this inspection all issues had been addressed satisfactorily. Comments from people who used the service included, “I have no complaints whatsoever. They are ‘top notch’. I am so happy with them”, and “I give them 10 out of 10”.

Care plans and risk assessments had been improved. There was a new secure electronic communication system for staff which meant care staff were kept up to date and informed promptly. Care staff told us this was very successful and had made a big difference to the service. The electronic care plans provided detailed information about all aspects of each person’s needs. Any changes to the person’s needs were reviewed promptly and care plans were kept updated.

Safe recruitment procedures were followed. New staff received training at the start of their employment on all topics relevant to their jobs. There was regular updated training and opportunities to gain relevant qualifications. People received their medicines safely. Staff had the equipment and training to protect people from infection.

There were sufficient staff employed to meet people’s needs. The service was in the process of streamlining rotas to give care workers more consistent visits. This was resulting in people having smaller teams of care workers who they knew and trusted. Care workers were positive about their jobs and told us they were willing to do extra hours to cover for vacant shifts when colleagues were off sick or on leave. People told us care workers usually arrived on time and stayed for the correct length of time.

People told us the care workers were always kind and treated them with respect. Comments included, “All the staff are caring - absolutely!” and "The carers are fantastic”. Care workers were observant and noticed when additional assistance may be needed with tasks.

People who used the service and care workers told us the service was well-led. Comments included, “The management team are brilliant! If I ever need them, they are always happy to talk” and “It's a good organisation to work for”. The providers had improved their monitoring systems to enable them to quickly identify any areas where improvements were needed and ensure actions were taken to address these.

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.

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 Requires Improvement (published 1 March 2019).

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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.