Background to this inspection
Updated
8 September 2018
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.
We gave the registered manager 48 hours’ notice that we would be visiting their premises on 16 August 2018 to carry out our comprehensive inspection and we returned announced on 20 August 2018. We gave them notice so they could arrange to be there and arrange for staff to be available to talk with us about the service. The visit on 16 August and 20 August 2018 was conducted by one inspector.
Prior to our inspection visit we reviewed the information we held about the service. This included any information received from local authority commissioners. Commissioners are people who work to find appropriate care and support services for people, and fund the care provided. We also looked at statutory notifications sent to us by the provider. A statutory notification is information about important events which the provider is required to send to us by law.
During our inspection visit we spoke with the registered manager who was also the provider and the nominated individual. We spoke with other staff that included the care manager, a field supervisor and a support worker. Following our visit we spoke with two people who used the service, three relatives and two staff by phone. We reviewed four people’s care records to see how their care and support was planned and delivered. We also reviewed records such as staff training records, care call rotas, medicine records, risk assessments, care plans and records associated with the provider's quality checking systems. We used this information to help us make a judgement about the service.
Updated
8 September 2018
The inspection took place on 16 and 20 August 2018 and was announced.
Quality Health and Home Care Service is registered to provide personal care to people in their own homes. Quality Health and Home Care Service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of this inspection visit, 11 people received personal care.
There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the service is run.
At the last inspection in March 2016 the service was rated as Good. At this inspection we found the quality of care had been maintained and people continued to receive a service that was well led, providing safe, caring, effective and responsive care and support that met their needs. The rating remains 'Good'.
People felt safe using the service and staff understood how to protect people from abuse and harm. There were procedures to keep people safe and manage identified risks to people’s care.
People had a detailed assessment of their health and social care needs before they used the service. Care plans contained detailed information to enable staff to provide people with the appropriate care and support for their needs. People’s care needs were regularly reviewed. The care manager maintained regular contact with people, or their relatives, to check the care provided was what people needed and expected. People and their relatives told us staff were reliable and stayed for the time needed. People were treated with dignity and respect.
Where medicines were administered, staff were trained and assessed as competent to do so safely. The provider had a recruitment process that had suitable checks to ensure that prior to staff starting work they were suitable to support people who used the service.
People knew how to complain and information about making a complaint was available for people when they started using the service. There was a system to log and action any complaints or concerns that people had raised.
Staff felt there could be better access to training, although all staff felt they were supervised and supported in their roles. People were assisted to access health services when needed and staff worked well with other health and social care professionals.
The principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) were followed by staff. People’s decisions and choices were respected and people felt involved in their care. People were supported to have choice and control of their lives and staff sought permission before assisting them.
Effective governance systems provided the registered manager with an overview of areas such as care records, medicine records and call times to assure themselves, people received a service they expected.