Home Instead Wirral

Updated 11 July 2019

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, 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 team consisted of two inspectors.

Service and service type:

Home Instead Senior Care Wirral is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care and support to individuals within their own homes throughout the local community. Not everyone using Home Instead Senior Care Wirral received personal care support. CQC only inspects the service received by people provided with their personal care and help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating.

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:

The provider was given 24 hours' notice because the location provides a care service to people who lived in the community. We needed to be sure that we could access the office premises.

Inspection site visit activity started on 28 May 2019 and ended on 28 May 2019. We visited the office location on 28 May 2019 to see the registered manger; and to review care records and policies and procedures. During the inspection we spoke with 12 people supported by the service, 16 relatives and one healthcare professional.

What we did:

Before our inspection we completed our planning document and reviewed the information we held on the service. This included notifications we had received from the provider, about incidents that affect the health, safety and welfare of people supported by the service. We checked to see if any information concerning the care and welfare of people supported by the service had been received.

As part of the inspection we used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Returns. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We went to Home Instead Senior Care Wirral 28 May 2019 and spoke with a range of people about the service. They included ten members of staff including the business director, registered manager, general manager, two care managers and five caregivers.

We looked at care records of three people, arrangements for caregivers supervision and appraisal, medication and records relating to the management of the service. We also spoke with caregivers about their recruitment and training.

Updated 11 July 2019

About the service:

Home Instead Senior Care Wirral is a domiciliary care service based on the Wirral. The service provides personal care for people with a variety of needs on a short and long term basis. The service has two teams of staff covering the North and South areas of the Wirral peninsula. In addition, the service has a rapid access team which helps support people in their own homes for up to a maximum of two weeks. At the time of our inspection visit the service supported 180 people with personal care and companionship.

People’s experience of using this service:

People were overwhelmingly positive about the service they received and said caregivers were exceptionally caring. People told us caregivers were very thoughtful and considerate and went above and beyond anything they expected. The relationships between caregivers and people who received support consistently demonstrated a high regard for people's dignity and respect.

The service was highly effective. We were repeatedly told caregivers made a difference and promoted a good quality of life for people.

People were actively empowered to take control of their care packages and to lead the lives of their choosing. Care records contained evidence the person supported had been involved with and

were at the centre of developing their care plans.

People were placed at the centre of the service and were consulted on every level. Respect for privacy and dignity was at the heart of the service's culture and values. People told us caregivers spoke with them before carrying out tasks and involved them in deciding on how they wanted to be supported.

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

The service was extremely flexible and care packages were changed and adapted to meet people's changing needs and choices. There was excellent communication between the service and people they supported to ensure positive outcomes for people were achieved.

People were supported by very well-trained caregivers. There was a particularly strong emphasis on continuous improvement with caregivers attending training on a range of subjects to ensure they supported people appropriately. This included specialist areas such dementia and end of life care. People told us they could see caregivers applying their training very effectively when providing their care and support.

The registered provider and management team worked extremely effectively and proactively together. We found they were excellent role models in the provision of high care standards. There was a positive leadership style which focussed upon dignity, independence and empowerment for both people supported by the service and caregivers.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk2019

Rating at last inspection:

At the last inspection the service was rated good (report published 24 August 2016).

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection.

Follow up:

The next scheduled inspection will be in keeping with the overall rating. We will continue to monitor information we receive from and about the service. We may inspect sooner if we receive concerning information about the service.