Archived: Atwell Care

Updated 31 July 2019

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.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes.

The service is not required to have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission as part of their registration. The provider is responsible for the day to day running of the service and is legally responsible for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We used information we had received about the service to plan this inspection. This included, 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.

During the inspection

We reviewed information relating to people’s care. This included care plans and records for four people. We also looked at information relating to the management of the service. We were able to speak with three people or their family members. We also spoke with three members of staff, including the provider.

Updated 31 July 2019

About the service

Atwell Care is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care for 14 people in their own homes, at the time of the inspection. 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. Each person receiving care from Atwell Care received personal care support.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People and staff told us they appreciated the fact the company was family owned and small enough to ensure a personalised service. People told us they knew the staff and staff knew each person who received care. The provider told us this was a key feature of their service.

People’s needs were assessed by the provider, to ensure the service could provide a care package to meet the person’s needs. Where people’s needs changed, these were monitored, and care packages were adapted.

Staff received training via e-learning or face-to-face. The e-learning had an 80% pass rate. However, the provider was not reviewing if any incorrect answers meant the staff member needed further training. Staff told us they felt they had received enough training to do their job well. People told us they felt staff were well trained and professional.

Staff were supported through one-to-one meetings and observations. Where areas for improvement or training needs were identified, staff received support to address this.

People told us they felt staff prepared food and drinks for them to a good standard.

People told us staff were kind, friendly and helpful. If people had any concerns, they told us they felt they could contact the office or speak to staff.

Staff understood their responsibility to identify and report any safeguarding concerns.

People’s care plans documented the support they needed from staff and their preferences. Staff were prompted to re-read the care plan each visit, to ensure they knew what support the person required.

Medicines administration was recorded electronically. The system told care staff what medicines were required at which visit. This reduced the likelihood of administration errors occurring. Staff had to confirm if they had administered the medicines or not, before they could log-out of the visit record.

The electronic record keeping system gave the management of the service an overview of how long staff spent at each visit. They could also see if staff were on time or running late for their next visit. People told us the staff arrived on time most days and they had not had any missed visits.

The provider maintained an overview of the service through completing care calls, being on-call, reviewing records, completing assessments and observations, as well as audits.

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

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 16 July 2018 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the date of registration.