Archived: Cera Oldham

Updated 23 March 2021

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

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors and an Expert 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 and flats.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means 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 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. Inspection activity started on 19 January 2021 and ended on 4 February 2021. We visited the office location on 19 January 2021.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who worked with the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with nine people who used the service and three relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with six members of staff, including the registered manager and care workers.

We reviewed a range of records. This included five 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.

Updated 23 March 2021

About the service

Homecare4u Oldham is a domiciliary care service based in Oldham, providing personal care to 51 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

Appropriate risk assessments were not always in place for people. This meant risk had not always been adequately assessed or mitigated. Since the inspection the service has updated people’s care plans to include necessary risk assessments.

One person’s medicines administration record (MAR) had missing administration signatures and did not sufficiently detail the medication information.

Oral healthcare plans were not as detailed as they should have been. People’s care plans were not always updated when their needs changed.

Policies and procedures were in place. However, the infection control policy had not been updated since the COVID-19 pandemic, this was updated after our site visit. Audits were in place though they did not always identify issues in relation to gaps in records and risk assessments.

This was a breach of regulation 17 good governance, as detailed in the well led domain.

Staff supervisions were up to date and happening in line with policy. Staff were up to date with training. However, some staff had limited knowledge about the mental capacity assessment. This was feedback to the registered manager who said they would address this. 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.

Surveys were being carried out and actions were taken based on the feedback. We were able to see the service carried out lessons learned from issues which arose.

Pre assessments were in place for people and consent to care forms were in peoples care plans. People were supported with eating and drinking when required.

Feedback from people who used the service was positive about the caring nature of the staff.

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

Why we inspected

This service was registered with us on 2 August 2019 and this was the first inspection.

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection.

We have identified a breach in relation to good governance at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan for the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.