The Care Quality Commission

Archived: North Hill Homecare

Unit 6, St Austell Bay Business Park, Par Moor Road, St Austell, Cornwall, PL25 3RF (01726) 825041

Provided and run by:
David Leslie Smith

Important: This service was previously registered at a different address - see old profile
Important: This service is now registered at a different address - see new profile

All Inspections

5 September 2013

During an inspection in response to concerns

We spoke with eight people who used the service or their representative, talked with seven members of staff, the manager and the provider and looked at records of people who used the service.

Peoples' views on the service they received were mixed. Comments included; 'I would recommend it', 'There's no rush, they sit down and have a chat', 'The quality has dipped recently, a lot of good staff have left' and 'It's all a bit inconsistent at the moment'.

Updated care plans were person centred and gave staff clear direction on how to deliver care and support.

At the time of the inspection staff were not adequately supported by training, supervision or staff meetings.

13, 16 May 2013

During a routine inspection

At the time of the inspection North Hill Homecare was providing care for 106 people. We spoke to 16 people who used the service and 8 relatives. People told us the carers were “wonderful”, and a relative said “Mum seems happy”.

Staff demonstrated a sound knowledge of the needs of the people they cared for. However care plans did not fully inform or direct staff about how to care for a person.

Not all staff were able to tell us the local protocol for reporting suspected abuse outside of the organisation.

There were systems in place for monitoring the quality of the service amongst service users and their relatives.

26 June 2012

During a routine inspection

We carried out an inspection of North Hill Homecare on on 26 June 2012. During the course of our inspection we talked with the registered manager and two members of staff. We telephoned seven people who used the service to ask them about North Hill Homecare.

During our visit to the office we heard the staff interacting with the people who used the service in a positive way.

One person we spoke to told us that the care workers were "excellent and amazing, and flexible". Three of the seven people (or their representatives) that we spoke with said that they had been involved in deciding what care and support they wanted. One relative told us that her mother's care workers were 'respectful' towards them both.

Five of the seven people (or their representatives) that we spoke with said that the care workers were usually on time but if they were running late the office always called them to let them know.

Everybody we spoke with told us that new staff members were introduced to them before they visited on their own.

All seven people (or their representatives) we spoke with told us they were happy with the care and support they received from North Hill Homecare. People said that the staff were "most helpful, polite and caring", "excellent" and that their "wonderful care has made such a difference to me" and added that they "looked forward to them visiting".

Everybody we spoke with told us that the care workers always completed the daily evaluation records during their visits

People told us that they were happy to approach the agency with any concerns or questions they may have.

People told us that they felt safe when receiving the service and that they could discuss anything with any of the staff.

People told us told us that the care workers were very helpful. They said that the care workers did not rush off and spent all of the allocated time with them. One person said they sometimes had a 'chat and a cup of tea whilst writing their notes'.

Two people we spoke to said that the supervisor had visited to ask if they were happy with the service they were receiving.