Care Connected Limited

Updated 28 November 2019

The Inspection:

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection Team:

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type:

Care Connected is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care, treatment and support to people in their own home. At the time of our inspection they were providing approximately 500 care hours per week.

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 the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. Inspection activity started on 5 November 2019 and ended on 6 November 2019. We visited the office location on 5 November 2019.

What we did:

Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We reviewed previous reports and notifications that are held on the CQC database. Notifications are important events that the service must let the CQC know about by law. We also reviewed safeguarding alerts and information received from a local authority.

During our inspection we spoke with five people. We spoke with the registered manager, deputy manager and three care workers. We reviewed three care files, three staff files and records held in relation to the running of the service.

Updated 28 November 2019

About the service: Care Connected provides personal care, treatment and support to people who require assistance in their own home.

People’s experience of using this service: People told us they were very happy using the service and thought it was a very good company.

Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. People were cared for and supported by staff who had received the appropriate training.

Staff were employed following the appropriate recruitment checks.

There were systems in place to minimise the risk of infection and to learn lessons from accidents and incidents. There were safe medication procedures for staff to follow.

Staff had a good understanding of people’s preferences of care, staff promoted people’s independence. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis.

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 support this practice.

People were supported to eat and drink enough to ensure they maintained a balanced diet and referrals to other health professionals were made when required.

People and their relatives were involved in the planning and review of their care. People were supported to follow their interests and participate in social activities. The registered manager had policies in place to respond to complaints. Support could be provided to people at the end of their life.

The provider had systems in place to monitor and provide good care and these were reviewed on a regular basis.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good. (last report published 12 May 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor information and intelligence we receive about the service to ensure good quality is provided to people.

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