This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own home. At the time of our inspection twenty two people were using the service. Not everyone using the service receives the regulated activity. CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’, that is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also take into account any wider social care provided.This inspection took place on 11 April 2018. Chenash Homecare Specialists have previously been inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). However the service was registered as new in March 2017 as the provider of the service changed. This is the first inspection of the service since that date. You can access previous inspection reports about the service by selecting the 'all reports' link for Chenash HomeCare Specialists on our website at www.cqc.org.uk
The service had a registered manager in post. 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.
People said they felt safe when being supported by staff. Staff were well supported to take appropriate action to ensure people were protected if they suspected they were at risk of abuse. Staff had access to up to date information and guidance on how to minimise identified risks to people due to their specific needs. This helped to keep people safe from injury or harm.
There were enough staff to meet people’s needs. The provider had systems in place to monitor staff were turning up on time for scheduled visits. If staff were late, the provider took prompt action to address this. The provider was employing new staff that better reflected the diversity and range of needs of people using the service. The provider carried out appropriate checks on staff’s suitability and fitness to support people.
Staff received regular and relevant training and were well supported by senior staff to help them meet people's needs. They followed good practice to ensure risks to people were minimised from poor hygiene and cleanliness when providing personal care and when preparing and handling food.
People said staff were kind and considerate and provided them with support that was dignified, respectful and which maintained their privacy at all times. Staff supported people to be as independent as they could and wanted to be. Where they were responsible for this, staff helped people to engage and pursue activities and personal interests to promote their overall wellbeing and reduce risks to them from social isolation.
People contributed to the planning of their care and support. Their care needs and specific preferences for how these should be met were set out in their personalised support plan. People said staff were able to meet their needs. Senior staff reviewed people’s care and support needs to ensure staff had up to date information about these.
People were supported to eat and drink sufficient amounts to meet their needs. Where staff were responsible for this, they supported people to take their prescribed medicines. Staff documented the support provided to people which helped to keep others involved in people’s care up to date and informed. Staff monitored people’s general health and wellbeing and when they had concerns about this they took prompt and appropriate action so that support could be sought from the relevant healthcare professionals.
People were satisfied with the care and support they received. The provider had a clear vision and aims for the service and communicated to people what they should expect from staff and the service in terms of standards and quality of care. People knew how to make a complaint if needed and the provider had appropriate arrangements in place to deal with these.
People spoke positively about the leadership of the service and said senior staff were easily accessible and supportive. The registered manager completed regular and relevant training to maintain the skills, knowledge and experience needed to lead effectively. They understood their registration responsibilities particularly with regards to submission of statutory notifications about key events that occurred at the service.
The provider sought people’s and staff’s views about the quality of care and support provided and how this could be improved. They used this information along with other audits and checks to monitor and review the quality and safety of the support provided. Any shortfalls or gaps identified through these checks were addressed promptly. The provider made improvements when these were required to enhance the quality of the service. The provider had recently reduced the capacity of the service to improve the quality of people's experiences as well as supporting staff to maintain good and safe working practices through more manageable workloads.
The provider was also using learning from complaints, events and incidents to improve the quality of support people experienced. For example, the provider had used learning to give people greater opportunities to hold them directly accountable for making improvements when these were required.
The provider worked in partnership with other agencies to develop and improve the delivery of care to people. They worked collaboratively with local authorities funding people’s care so they were kept up to date and well informed about people’s care and support needs. This helped to ensure people continued to receive the appropriate care and support they required.
We checked whether the service was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. Staff received training in the MCA and were aware of their responsibilities in relation to the Act. Records showed people’s capacity to make decisions about aspects of their care was considered when planning their support.