ICRIT Healthcare

Updated 23 October 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. 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.

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 a short period notice of the inspection because we needed to be sure there would be someone at the office to facilitate the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with three members of staff including the registered manager, the director and a team leader.

We reviewed a range of records. This included care records for two people, four staff files, training records, meeting minutes, audits and other records about the management of the home.

After the inspection

We spoke with two people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We also contacted two members of care staff and four professionals who have regular dealings with the service.

Updated 23 October 2019

About the service

ICRIT is a domiciliary care agency, providing personal care to people living in their own homes in the community. They provide support to; older adults, including people living with dementia, people with physical disabilities, and people with learning disabilities. At the time of our inspection there were 23 people receiving a service.

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

Systems for safeguarding people who used the service from abuse were robust, training was given to staff and their knowledge was good. The service had appropriate general and individual risk assessments in place. Medicines were managed safely and staff were trained to an appropriate level.

Staff were recruited safely and staffing levels were sufficient to support the people who currently used the service. However, some people felt there was an issue with staff sometimes turning up late to visits. The induction programme and on-going training equipped staff for their roles.

Thorough assessments were carried out and care plans included a range of relevant health and personal information. People’s nutritional and hydration needs were assessed and their dietary requirements and preferences recorded and adhered to.

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. However, records around MCA and consent could have been clearer.

People we spoke with and their relatives felt they were treated well and their diversity was respected. People’s dignity and privacy was respected by staff. Some people had a little difficulty with communicating with care workers, if English was not the staff member’s first language.

People’s care was person-centred and care and support needs were reviewed and updated on a regular basis. Complaints were logged and followed up appropriately. The service was able to link in with other agencies in order to support people nearing the end of their lives.

The service monitored complaints, safeguarding concerns, notifications, accidents and incidents on a weekly basis. Lessons learned were shared with staff via monthly team meetings and supervision sessions.

Staff told us they felt well supported by the management team. The service worked well with other professionals and agencies to produce joined up care and support.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

At the last inspection in published on 22 October 2018 the service was found to be in breach of the regulations in relation to governance, and was rated as requires improvement overall. The service submitted an action plan which described the actions they would take to improve the service. We reviewed how this had progressed at our inspection and found they were no longer in breach of this regulation.

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.