Sylviancare Bournemouth and Poole

Sylviancare Bournemouth & Poole is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. At the time of this inspection 30 people were receiving the regulated activity of personal care from the service. 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

Improvements had been made by the provider to the governance of the service. Systems and processes had been improved to ensure the provider had effective governance and oversight of the service. The provider had implemented a range of systems and processes to ensure there was effective governance and oversight of the service. They had also implemented a dedicated quality assurance post within the head office team. This new role enabled a range of effective audits to be completed that provided a basis for continual improvement and learning within the whole staff team.

At our last inspection we recommended improvements to risk assessments and medicine management, we found the provider had acted upon the recommendations. People had pre -assessments and risk assessments completed for them. These were then used to develop person centred care plans which guided staff on how to care for people safely. Care plans were detailed and regularly updated to ensure people received effective care and support.

Improvements had been made to the management of medicines and the provider was following the safe good practice guidelines. Medicines were managed and administered safely, including medicines taken as and when required and prescribed creams. People were supported to take their medicines by staff who had received training to administer medicines.

People were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. People felt safe with staff, who had the appropriate training and skills to provide care safely and effectively.

Robust recruitment practices were followed. Appropriate checks were completed to ensure only suitable staff were employed. There was an ongoing process of staff recruitment to ensure people were supported safely and effectively. Staff received an induction and were well supported through a programme of regular supervision, spot checks and training.

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.

People and their relatives told us they were happy with the support they received from Sylviancare Bournemouth & Poole. A relative told us, “They absolutely provide the support as needed. They are very experienced and confident. They know what they are doing, and they do it well.” Staff knew people well and understood how they preferred their care and support to be delivered.

People felt the service was well led, friendly, and professional. Staff felt very well supported in their roles and spoke positively of the supportive and open approach taken by the management team.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 23 March 2022).

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found the provider had made the required improvements and was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

We carried out an announced inspection of this service on 3 and 4 March 2022. A breach of regulation in relation to the management of the service and governance systems was found. The provider completed an action plan after that inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve.

We undertook this focused inspection to check the service had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe, and Well-led which contain those requirements.

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 requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

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

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.

Sylviancare Bournemouth and Poole is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. At the time of this inspection 36 people were receiving the regulated activity of personal care from the service. 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

Improvements were needed to the governance systems within the service. The process for monitoring and checking that the service operated in a safe way were not effective. We discussed our findings with the registered manager who accepted there were areas for improvement and told us they would address the shortfalls immediately.

People had risk assessments, but these were not always completed consistently or in enough detail to guide staff effectively. Staff knew people very well so this had not had a negative impact on people’s care. During the inspection the provider showed us a different format that they would implement for all risk assessments, they confirmed these would be completed immediately following the inspection. We have made a recommendation to the provider around the completion of risk assessments.

People received their medicines as prescribed. However, improvements were needed to the systems for managing the administration of prescribed creams and as required (PRN) medicines. Body maps for recording the application of topical creams, were in place but these were not always being completed by staff. There was not a PRN, protocol in place to guide staff on administering PRN medicines. This meant there was a risk staff may not be administering the PRN medicines in a consistent way. We have made a recommendation to the provider around the management and administration of medicines.

People’s care plans were not always completed consistently. Some care plans were lacking in detail which may mean people did not receive their care and support in ways they preferred. Staff knew people well, so this had not had any impact. The registered manager told us these shortfalls would be addressed immediately.

People were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. People felt safe with staff, who had the appropriate training and skills to provide care safely and effectively.

Safe recruitment practices were followed, and appropriate checks completed to ensure that only suitable staff were employed. There was an ongoing process of staff recruitment to ensure people were supported safely and effectively. Staff received an appropriate induction and were well supported through a programme of regular supervision and training.

People received personalised care which was responsive to their individual needs. Staff had a good understanding of the care and support people needed and provided this with kindness and care, whilst respecting their privacy and dignity. People received their care from a small, consistent team of care staff who knew people’s care and support needs well.

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.

The service involved people and their families with people’s day to day care and support needs. Relatives and people felt listened to and were consulted about how they preferred to receive their care and support.

Health and social care professionals spoke positively about the management team and told us the service was responsive and effective in providing care and support for people.

People felt the service was well led, friendly and professional. Staff felt well supported in their roles and appreciated the open and supportive approach taken by the management team.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 20/07/2020 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection.

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and 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 will continue to monitor this service.

We have identified a breach in relation to the management of the governance systems 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 governance of the service. 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.