- Homecare service
Continuity Healthcare Services Private Limited
Report from 17 October 2024 assessment
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
This assessment was completed between 3 and 9 October 2024. We found 2 breaches of the legal regulations in relation to staffing and safe care and treatment. Risks to people’s safety were not always assessed and recorded. Plans to mitigate the risks people faced had not always been kept up to date. Staff were often significantly early or late to calls, which increased the risk of harm to people, impacted on people’s ability to plan their day and maintain their independence. Staff had not always completed the training they needed to help them to provide good care. The service did not always learn from incidents and ensure improvements were made where needed. However, there was a safeguarding and whistleblowing policy available with details of which agencies to contact in the event of any concern. Staff worked with other health and social care services to meet people’s needs. People had been supported to express their wishes about future care needs, which staff were aware of. Staff told us they had the support they needed to do their job. Staff were able to contact the management team at any time for support and guidance. The service completed regular staff surveys to receive feedback. Governance systems included reviews of records, spot checks on how staff were supporting people and feedback from people using the service. The senior management team were aware of shortfalls and had developed an action plan to improve the service, which was regularly reviewed and updated. We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.
People's experience of this service
People told us staffing arrangements at the service were not good enough. People said staff often arrived late or early and they did not know which staff were due to provide care for them. People gave examples of staff being up to 2 hours later than their scheduled visit and not receiving information about the delay. Comments included, “We never know who is arriving, or at what time” and “Many late visits since I started with this agency. I have tried to contact them to complain about the unacceptable timings, but they won’t listen to me or try to change things.” Most people told us staff knew what to do to provide care safely. However, some people expressed concern about staff skills. One relative commented, “Some of them don’t seem to know what to do and will avoid tasks by finding excuses” and “I don’t think it’s very safe, but I have to trust they know what they’re doing.” People told us staff did not provide suitable support to prepare food and drinks. Some people said staff lacked skills to prepare basic food, such as a boiled egg and toast. We received mixed feedback from people about the way care was planned. Some people felt the service met their specific needs. Others said the service was planned around the needs and availability of staff and was not personalised. Examples given included call times which did not meet their needs and a lack of choice about the gender of staff that provided care for them. However, people said they were treated with kindness and compassion. Comments included, “My carer is very kind and is very gentle when washing me” and “The 2 carers I have treat me with kindness and are caring in the tasks they do for me”. People said staff worked well with other services, such as community health services and paramedics, to ensure they received the care they need. People and relatives said they felt able to raise concerns if needed. People told us they had received good support to plan for their future.