Adopt Healthcare Ltd

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

Well Led- This means we looked for evidence that service, leadership, management and governance assured high quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture. At the last inspection we rated this key question inadequate. At this assessment the rating has improved to requires improvement. The provider has made improvements to governance systems and processes. However, we have not been able to see these implemented consistently. Regular staff meetings were held promoting the culture of the service. Staff were confident to speak up and felt supported with their equity and diversity respected.

This service scored 61 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider held regular staff meetings which were used to drive improvement in the service quality and to share the direction and culture of the service. Staff confirmed this and told us, "We have monthly staff and management meetings. At these meetings, we discuss policies and procedures, there are subtle reminders and exchange of information that will improve our service delivery."

We saw clear evidence of the provider's values being communicated in staff meetings and supervisions. The provider had a clear and up to date duty of candour policy in place. However, since the last inspection we cannot be fully assured the provider has promoted and implemented this policy as there had been a breakdown of communication with the local authority safeguarding team.

Staff told us how the registered manager was supportive and kind, but firm, with feedback including, "My manager is such an approachable, kind hearted, nice disciplinarian that upholds work ethics and wouldn't tolerate any ill attitude to work." As well as "The registered managers' encouragement goes a long way to boost staff morale," and “The registered manager is fair and approachable to all staff. Not only in work related matters but gives a listening ear to personal concerns as well."

We have observed the registered manager was very compassionate and caring, however we had some concerns over their skills, experience and knowledge in how to manage and drive improvement in the quality of the service and meet regulations. Improvements have been noted on this assessment however, all these improvements have been created with the clear support and guidance of the external consultant employed. As there were no active service users during the assessment we cannot be assured the registered manager has the skills, knowledge and understanding to effectively and consistent implement and embed the new processes and systems put in place.

Staff told us they were aware of the whistleblowing policy and had access to this. Staff explained how they would feel confident to raise any issues, concerns or areas for improvement and felt the registered manager would listen. Staff told us, "[Registered manager] has an open-door policy that supports staff members to reach her for clarification of issues if need be."

The provider had a very clear whistle-blowing policy in place which all staff had been provided with copies of and were able to review in the office. Processes were in place to ensure this was promoted and implemented from recruitment, through to regular supervisions and appraisals.

The registered manager outlined the recruitment process and its importance in promoting accessibility for staff. Staff told us they felt supported by the registered manager, and no staff had any concerns over workforce equity, diversity or inclusion.

The provider had a robust recruitment policy which included a detailed international recruitment section to ensure they were able to continue to maintain workforce equity, diversity and inclusion for all potential applicants. On reviewing staff files, we observed diversity among the staff team, with adjustments able to be made where required to aid equity, diversity and inclusion.

The registered manager detailed their understanding of the need for audits, reviews of care plans, daily notes and good governance. They have detailed how they have schedules in place and calendar monitoring to allow them to maintain oversight and promote good governance going forward. Staff told us how they observed the registered manager kept care records and medication records up to date and performed spot checks on them for compliance purposes. However, we are unable to fully corroborate this as the service does not have any current service users.

Since our last inspection the provider has made improvements in the overall management, governance and oversight of the service. However, as there were no service users we were unable to see the provider implementing the documents, processes and governance audits in a live environment. We cannot, therefore, be fully assured the provider is able to implement safe and effective governance systems. Through taking on new service users, embedding the skills and experiences gained from working with the external consultant and completing the governance and quality assurance processes regularly, we will only then be able to see consistency and gain assurances.

There were no service users in receipt of regulated activity during this assessment, therefore we were unable to gain feedback for this quality statement. However, we have reviewed the documents kept for the most recent service user, and other documents in the service. These show clear involvement and partnership working with other professionals such as GPs, pharmacists, social workers and most recently a care home where the last service user was placed.

The registered manager told us, "We will have to foster relationships with healthcare professionals, social services and other stakeholders." We received no further clarification as to how the registered manager planned on implementing this or how they would or could include people into the communities. As the service did not have any current service users, we were unable to see how forging partnerships and links with communities was promoted and implemented in the care provided by Adopt Healthcare.

We have not received feedback from external stakeholders specifically relating to this quality statement. However, we have had general feedback from the social workers in the local authority safeguarding team. The social workers stated they had made “numerous attempts to carry out safeguarding enquiries without success.” Social care workers stated, “This has made it quite difficult to complete the investigation process and therefore it is not yet completed.” This feedback suggests the provider had not fostered clear communication channels and there is a clear breakdown in professional relationship with the external stakeholders.

The providers’ systems to ensure they worked collaboratively and effectively in partnership with external partners and stakeholders was not always or consistently effective. We did see communication logs with professionals were kept by the provider however, these were shared after the onsite assessment had concluded. We cannot be assured open communication and effective partnership working was being implemented.

The registered manager told us, "By working closely with the consultant, I have gained the skills and experience to put into practice the high-quality care plans and requirements needed to ensure continued delivery of high quality practical care by Adopt Healthcare Ltd, by using the template as a guide to assist me." However, as there were no service users in receipt of regulated activity at the time of the assessment, we have been unable to review how this process is being implemented and managed.

We found no evidence the provider had processes to seek out feedback from people and relatives to drive improvements in the quality of care as a result of feedback. We did find the provider had lessons learnt evidenced for falls management and prevention, but there had been no wider implementation of this learning as there were no service users at the time of the assessment. Due to there being no service users we were unable to review the effectiveness and consistency of the lessons learnt process.