Patience Company

Updated 21 September 2022

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of one inspector and one Expert by Experience who spoke with people and their relatives on the telephone. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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. At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave notice of the inspection. We needed to be sure the registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. We also needed to arrange to speak with people over the phone.

Inspection activity started on 5 August 2022 and ended on 12 August 2022. We visited the location’s office on 8 & 10 August 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service and the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with the registered manager and the administrator. We reviewed a range of records which included three care plans, three staff files in relation to recruitment and various staff supervision, training and appraisal records. We also reviewed various policies and procedures, records of staff meetings, complaints, audits and quality assurance documents.

We contacted five staff and gained their views about the service. We gained the views from five people and three relatives’ although we could only use two relatives views due to how we regulate the service.

Updated 21 September 2022

About the service

Patience Company is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care and support to people who live in their own home. At the time of the inspection there were nine people who were receiving personal care. Some people were living in shared accommodation called supported living. The three supported living services were under a separate contractual agreement and CQC does not regulate the premises used for supported living. 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

During the inspection we identified shortfalls relating to the recording of medicines and the recording of risks relating to the recruitment of new staff. We recommend the provider seeks best practice guidance in relation to recruiting staff and demonstrating risks have been mitigated through a robust risk assessment prior to the member of staff starting their employment. We also recommend best practice guidance is followed in relation to the recording of medicines administration and there being a clear audit trail of actions taken when shortfalls are identified.

People were supported by staff who undertook testing in line with government guidance. The providers policy relating to the wording of protective eye wear was in need of updating. The registered manager took action to address this following the inspection.

People were supported by staff who had a good understanding of keeping people safe and promoting their independence. Although at times people were supported by staff they might not know very well. The registered manager confirmed they were recruiting new staff which would help address this. Care plans confirmed where people were independent, and staff promoted people to make decision about their care and support. People felt they received safe care.

Care plans contained important information such as how people wished to have their support provided by staff. This included what they liked to eat and their end of life wishes. Where one care plan contained limited information about the person. The registered manager took action during our inspection to update their care plan. The registered manager monitored incidents and accidents and records confirmed action taken to prevent similar incidents from occurring again.

People felt able to discuss any changes to their care needs. Positive feedback had been gained from people through customer satisfaction surveys. People received support from staff who received training, so they had the skills and knowledge to support people.

The registered manager kept up to date with guidance and training and staff felt supported and happy in their roles. Quality assurance systems were in place to monitor staff’s performance and competency along with health and safety and people’s environments.

Rating at last inspection and update

This service was registered with us on 2 July 2021 and this was the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations and to provide a rating for the service.

Follow up

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

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