Woburn Care

Woburn Care is a domiciliary care service providing personal care)] for people living in their own homes in the community. At the time of our inspection there were 15 people using the service.

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

The provider’s registered manager left the service in December 2022 and the provider had struggled to find a suitably skilled and experienced person for this role. Some basic quality assurance checks and quality monitoring had not taken place since December 2022. The care worker supervisions and training had also not taken place. During the course of this inspection the provider recruited a new manager and initial plans had been developed to address the shortfalls mentioned in this report.

People said they felt safe when supported by Woburn Care. People were protected from avoidable harm because care workers knew how to identify and report any concerns relating to the risk of abuse. Risks to people’s health, safety and well-being were assessed and measures developed to remove or reduce the risks. People were supported by care workers who had been safely recruited.

People’s medicines were managed safely. Care workers received appropriate training and had their competency checked to help ensure they were sufficiently skilled and knowledgeable to safely administer medicines. Care workers had received training in infection control practices and personal protective equipment was provided for them.

Care workers knew people well and were able to promptly identify when people’s needs changed, and they sought professional advice appropriately. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and care workers supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People and relatives praised the kind and caring nature of the care workers. People received consistent care from a small team of staff. People knew about their care plans and could decide what care and support they needed.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (Published 02 February 2018).

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to the overall management of the service and the approach of some staff members. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, caring and well-led only.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe, and well-led sections of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Woburn Care on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to the overall management of the service 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 from 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 continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.

At the last inspection, the service was rated good. At this inspection we found the service remained good.

The service has a registered manager. 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.

People were safe because there were effective risk assessments in place, and systems to keep them safe from abuse or avoidable harm. There was sufficient numbers of staff to support people safely. Staff took appropriate precautions to ensure that people were protected from the risk of acquired infections. People’s medicines were managed safely, and there was evidence of learning from incidents.

People’s needs had been assessed regularly and they had care plans in place that took account of their individual needs, preferences, and choices. Staff had regular supervisions and they had been trained to meet people’s individual needs effectively. The requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 were being met, and staff understood their roles and responsibilities to seek people’s consent prior to care and support being provided. Where required, people had been supported to have enough to eat and drink to maintain their health and wellbeing. They were also supported to access healthcare services when families were unable to provide support.

People were supported by caring, friendly and respectful staff. They were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, and the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Staff regularly reviewed the care provided and were guided through regular input by the person receiving care to ensure the care provided continued to meet their individual needs, in a person centred way.

The provider had an effective system to handle complaints and concerns. Where people were able to remain in their own homes, staff ensured that they remained comfortable, dignified and pain-free at the end of their lives.

The service was well managed and the provider’s quality monitoring processes had been used effectively to drive continuous improvements. The registered manager provided stable leadership and effective support to the staff. They worked well with staff to promote a caring and inclusive culture within the service. Collaborative working with people, their relatives and other professionals resulted in positive care outcomes for people using the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.