Dhek Bhal

Updated 7 July 2023

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 was carried out by one inspector.

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 provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 12 June 2023 and ended on 19 June 2023. We visited the location’s office on 13 and 19 June 2023.

What we did before the inspection

Before the inspection we reviewed information we had received about the service since it registered with CQC. This included CQC notifications. These describe events that happen in the service that the provider is legally required to tell us about.

We used 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 this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 9 people who used the service and 5 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with people who used the service in their preferred language. We received feedback from 5 professionals who worked with the service. We spoke with 9 members of staff, including care staff, the registered manager, homecare manager and chair of the Board of Trustees. Everyone’s comments have been incorporated into this report.

We looked at a range of records relating to people's care and the running of the service. This included 5 people’s care records and medication records. We looked at 4 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff support. We read documents relating to the management of the service including audits, policies and procedures and training information.

We considered all of this information to help us to make a judgement about the service.

Updated 7 July 2023

About the service

Dhek Bhal is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to people who live in their own homes. The service provides support to adults who have a range of physical, sensory or cognitive needs. At the time of the inspection, 44 people were using the service and receiving personal care.

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

People were safe when receiving support from Dhek Bhal. Systems, procedures and training were in place to help staff protect people from abuse. Care records described key risks and explained how these should be managed. Staff knew the actions they should take to help keep people safe. People were supported by staff who were trained and competent in helping them with medicines.

Enough staff were employed, and safe recruitment practices were in place. People were usually supported by regular staff who knew them well. The service primarily provided support to people from a South Asian background, and staff shared the culture, language, values and beliefs of the people they supported. This meant people could use their preferred language and staff understood and met individual cultural needs and preferences.

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.

Systems and processes were in place to monitor and manage the quality of the service. Some audits and policies needed review, but this was done as soon as it was highlighted to the registered manager.

There was a very clear vision and strong values in the service. There was a focus on empowerment, human rights, dignity and informed choice. Everyone told us the service was well led and we saw managers lead by example and sharing their passion with others. Staff were motivated and proud to work for the service and felt well supported in their roles.

Feedback from people and their relatives was positive, and surveys and reviews were carried out regularly to check people remained happy with the service they received. Effective links had been established with a wide range of stakeholders. This supported the service to share information and promote culturally appropriate practices which met people’s needs.

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 18 May 2018).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

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

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Dhek Bhal 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.