Caremark East Hertfordshire and Broxbourne

Caremark East Hertfordshire and Broxbourne is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care to adults with physical disabilities and older people in the local area. 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.

At the time of our inspection 26 people were receiving the service.

People’s experience of using this service:

People received outstanding care and support by a staff team that were committed, passionate and knowledgeable. Staff provided people’s care in a very person-centred way. Staff were creative in helping people to express their views and people were consulted about all aspects of their care and support.

People felt safe receiving the service and were protected from avoidable harm by a staff team trained and confident to recognise and report any concerns. Potential risks to people were assessed and minimised and people received their medicines at the right times. Staff had the time to ensure people’s needs were met safely, and in a way that suited them. People received care from a small team of staff who were well trained and exceptionally well supported. Staff worked well together and with external care professionals to ensure people received the care and support they needed.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People were involved in making decisions about their care and support. Where people needed additional support to make decisions, staff referred people to external advocates.

Staff were genuinely interested in and knew people extremely well. People’s care plans were detailed and provided staff with comprehensive guidance on how to meet people's needs. Staff were skilled at supporting people while minimising triggers that may cause people anxiety. Where it was part of the planned care, staff supported people to access the community, such as shop, churches and restaurants.

Staff were caring, compassionate and thoughtful, which reflected the provider’s values of person-centred care. Staff treated people with the utmost respect and had embedded privacy and dignity into their working practice. There was a strong recognition that people were individuals. Staff spoke passionately about providing people with excellent, person-centred care and showed real empathy for people.

The provider and registered manager were experienced, skilled leaders who were committed to involving people, relatives, staff and other stakeholders in the development of the service. Audits, quality monitoring checks helped drive forward further improvements in the service. We received positive feedback about the way the service was managed. Everyone said the provider, registered manager and staff were approachable and accessible.

The service had developed strong links with the local community and looked for ways to increase people's awareness of care and related topics such as dementia. The provider and registered manager looked for ways to continuously improve and develop the service. Staff were proud to work for the service and worked in partnership with external professionals.

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

Rating at last inspection: This service was registered with us on 24 May 2018 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the date of the provider’s registration with the CQC.

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.