Amber Case Management Limited

Updated 1 August 2019

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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

The inspection was carried out by one adult social care inspector from the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Service and service type:

The service is a domiciliary care agency and registered to provide personal care to people in their own homes.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection:

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because we needed to be sure that someone would be in the office.

Inspection site visit activity started on 11 June and ended on 12 June 2019. We visited the office location on both days to see the manager and office staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures.

What we did:

Prior to the inspection we reviewed information and evidence we already held about the service, which had been collected via our ongoing monitoring of care services. During the inspection we spoke to a clinical case manager/occupational therapist, a staff member from the human resources department responsible for training, a business manager, the office manager, the senior complex nurse trainer, an independent occupational therapist, three family members of service users, two service users and a care staff member.

The service did not receive a request for a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to the inspection.

We reviewed four plans of care, five medicines administration records (MAR) and other records relating to the management of the service and the care provided to its service users.

Updated 1 August 2019

Amber Case Management offers a case management service for people with acquired neurological damage, such as brain and spinal cord injuries. Amber case management provide a service to legal teams who are working on behalf of their clients to gain compensation for care or as a result of a personal injury or clinical negligence. This service may also continue when any settlement has been reached. The service have a team of professionals such as occupational therapists and nurses who provide ongoing assessments and advice to the legal teams to ensure the care is what people need. The service currently support 50 ‘clients’.

The support each person received was unique to them and bespoke packages of care were delivered by staff, recruited and trained through the service but employed directly by the person themselves or a deputy appointed by the court of protection to manage the persons financial affairs. The professionals who managed the financial/legal affairs and care package, including care staff were referred to as guardians and came from a legal background. It is Amber Case Managements role to provide management and support to the guardians to ensure people get the care they require.

The service will assist with the assessment of need and the role of the case manager included attending litigation meetings, court proceedings and case conferences to draw up a comprehensive assessment of needs, and develop care plans based on the specific and individual needs of individuals.

People were kept safe. No one we spoke with raised any concerns regarding safety or had any concerns about the way the service was run. People were positive about their care and support.

Each person had dedicated members of staff to look after them. People who used the service choose which staff they had to support them.

People who used the service, family members and professionals we spoke with said the service was professional, caring and staff were flexible in their support.

The administration of medicines was safe. Staff audited the system to check for any errors.

There was a culture of openness at the service. People were included in meetings to ensure they had a say in their care and were aware of any changes.

Staff were trained in each persons specific needs as well as the mandatory training such as infection control or health and safety.

The service liaised with other organisations and professionals to ensure people received the care they needed.

People received a comprehensive assessment and care plans gave staff the details they needed to deliver effective care.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

People’s experience of using this service:

People who used the service and family members all thought the service was professional, supportive and caring.

Rating at last inspection:

At the last inspection (report published 22 December 2016) the service was rated as good.

Why we inspected:

This inspection was part of our scheduled plan of visiting services to check the safety and quality of care people received.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor information and intelligence we receive about the care service to ensure care remains safe and of good quality. We will return to re-inspect in line with our inspection timescales for good services, however if any information of concern is received, we may inspect sooner.