Background to this inspection
Updated
11 December 2020
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
This inspection was carried out by one inspector and two Experts by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses or 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 wanted to be able to gather the views of people receiving care and care staff before we visited the office.
Inspection activity started on 17 November 2020 and ended on 25 November 2020. We visited the office location on 23 November 2020.
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 and professionals who work with the service. 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 thirteen people who used the service and ten relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with twelve members of staff including the registered manager, director of operations, care co-ordinators, senior care workers and care workers.
We reviewed a range of records. This included sixteen people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.
Updated
11 December 2020
About the service
Starcare Rural is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to 159 people at the time of the inspection. 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 to monitor the quality of care being delivered were effective in ensuring peoples care was safe and met people’s needs. However, some audits needed to explain what actions would be taken when errors in recording were identified. We have made a recommendation about the development and training of staff responsible for completing audits.
People were supported to take their medicines safely. Some documentation was updated during our inspection to ensure medicines records were clear and complete.
Risks to people were clearly identified and care plans explained to staff how to support the person. Care plans were person centred and staff told us they were accessible and easy to follow.
Staffing levels were sufficient and systems were in place to monitor the timeliness and consistency of staff during care visits. People spoke positively about the care they received and told us they felt safe. Staff were described as, “lovely,” and that staff, “couldn’t do enough” to support them.
Staff felt confident in the registered manager and also felt well supported in their roles. Staff had access to appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 25 September 2019).
Why we inspected
This focused inspection was a planned inspection based on the previous rating. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions safe and well-led.
We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.
The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Starcare Rural on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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.