Archived: Ribble Homecare

Updated 20 December 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This comprehensive inspection took place on 4 and 5 December 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection to ensure the registered manager and staff would be available at the registered office to speak with the inspector.

In preparation for our visit, we considered the previous inspection report and checked the information we held about the service and the provider. This included statutory notifications sent to us by the service about incidents and events that had occurred in the service. A notification is information about important events, which the service is required to send us by law.

Before the inspection, the provider submitted a detailed Provider Information Return (PIR). We used information the provider sent us in the PIR. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We noted the PIR also included positive feedback from people who used the service and staff, particularly about how the service was run.

The inspection activity started on 3 December 2018 and ended on 6 December 2018. We used the 24-hour notice period given to the provider on 3 December 2018 to telephone two people who used the service and three relatives to gather their views about the service. We visited the registered office on 4 and 5 December 2018 and spoke with the provider, the registered manager, a care coordinator and three members of care staff. In addition, we reviewed the care records for four people who used the service, a selection of the policies and procedures, accident and incident documentation, meeting minutes and records relating to the auditing and monitoring of the service provision. On 5 December 2018, with consent, we visited four people who used the service in their own homes.

Following the inspection, we gathered feedback from a health professional who worked closely with the service and a professional who was employed by Ribble Homecare on a sessional basis to provide emotional support to staff and people who used the service.

Updated 20 December 2018

We carried out an announced inspection at Ribble Homecare on 4 and 5 December 2018. This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to older people, people living with dementia, younger adults and people with a physical disability. The service specialises in providing care to people at the end of their life. At the time of this inspection, there were a total of 20 people being supported by the service.

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

The service had a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they 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.

At our last inspection we rated the service good. There was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. We therefore found the evidence continued to support the rating of good. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

Why the service is rated good:

People received consistently high levels of care from staff who were kind, caring and willing to go the extra mile to support people. The registered manager was a positive role model for staff and demonstrated a commitment to ongoing service improvement.

The service specialised in providing care and support to people who were at the end of their life. Staff had received specialist training to help ensure they were able to provide people with high quality, compassionate end of life care which met their wishes and preferences. The service had a policy of ensuring no one died alone at home.

People's privacy and dignity was respected and promoted. Staff had received training in equality and diversity and there were policies in place to help ensure they provided care which promoted and respected people’s rights.

People told us they felt safe with the staff who supported them from Ribble Homecare. People's care records contained details of people’s needs and associated risks.

Staff had been safely recruited. Staff we spoke with were aware of how to safeguard adults at risk of abuse. There were safe processes and practices in place for the management and administration of medicines.

Staff received the necessary induction, training and support to help ensure they were able to deliver effective care. People told us staff were knowledgeable about their needs and the way they wished to be supported.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way; the policies and systems at the service supported this practice.

Staff were responsive to any changes in people’s health conditions. Prompt advice and support was sought from health professionals when necessary; this helped to prevent unnecessary hospital admissions.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality and effectiveness of the service. The provider regularly sought feedback from people who used the service, their relatives and staff. Any comments received were welcomed as a means of improving the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.