Archived: Homecare North

Updated 13 May 2015

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 18, 19 and 23 March 2015 and was announced. The provider was given 48 hours notice because the location provides a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure that someone would be present at the service offices.

The inspection team consisted of an adult social care inspector.

We reviewed information we held about the provider, in particular notifications about incidents, accidents, safeguarding matters and any deaths. We contacted the local Healthwatch group, the local authority contracts team, the local authority safeguarding adults team and the local Clinical Commissioning Group. We used their comments to support our planning of the inspection.

We visited five people in their own homes to obtain their views on the care and support they received. We also spoke with a care manager, a district nurse and a consultant physician about their perceptions of the care provided by the service. We interviewed four staff members, a supervisor and the service manager for the service. The registered manager for the service was not available at the time of the inspection. Office based staff showed and explained electronic recording and scheduling systems used by the service.

We reviewed a range of documents and records including; five care records for people who used the service, five records of staff employed at the home, duty rotas, complaints records and accidents and incident records. We also looked at records of staff meetings and a range of other quality audits and management records.

Updated 13 May 2015

This inspection took place on 18, 19 and 23 March 2015 and was announced. This was the first inspection of the service that was registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in March 2014.

Homecare North is a short term support service providing domiciliary care and support to people in their own homes, often following hospital discharge. It is registered to deliver personal care. At the time of the inspection the service manager told us they supported around 20 people over the wider rural area of north Northumberland. She said this number fluctuated regularly depending on when people were discharged from hospital.

A new registered manager was in the process of making an application to register with the CQC at the time of our inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The day to day running of the location was carried out by a service manager, who would report to the registered manager.

People told us they felt safe when care staff were supporting them with personal care and other matters. They told us care workers were very helpful and they looked forward to them visiting. Staff told us they had received training in relation to safeguarding adults and would report any concerns. Processes were in place to recruit staff and to carry out checks to ensure they were suitably experienced and were of good character to work with potentially vulnerable people. People told us staff attended appointments within prescribed time slots and there were no late calls or missed appointments.

The provider had in place plans to deal with emergency situations and an out of hours on-call system, manned by senior staff. The service also had access to four wheel drive vehicles in the event of adverse weather.

There was no one receiving support with their medicines at the time of our inspection, although the service manager said this type of support was available. Previous care records indicated that appropriate processes were followed when dealing with medicines and staff confirmed they had received training in the safe handling of medicines.

People told us staff had the right skills to support their care. Staff said they received training and there was a system in place to ensure this was updated on a regular basis. Staff told us they received regular supervision and appraisals. Documents we saw supported this. Staff were aware of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and issues relating to personal choice and best interests. The service manager confirmed that no one using the service was subject to restrictions imposed by the Court of Protection. People said they were supported by care staff to maintain appropriate intake of food and drinks.

People told us they found staff caring and supportive. They said their privacy and dignity was respected during the delivery of personal care and support. People were also supported to maintain their well-being, as staff worked with district nurses, general practitioners or therapists, who they told us they contacted, if they were concerned about people.

People’s needs were assessed and care plans detailed the type of support they should receive. Care plans contained goals that people wished to achieve and these were reviewed and updated as support progressed. The service manager told us there had been no formal complaints in the last 12 months. People told us they were happy with the care provided and they had no complaints about the service.

The provider had in place systems to effectively manage the service and monitor quality. Regular spots checks took place to review care provision and ensure people were receiving appropriate levels of care. People were also contacted to solicit their views of the service. Staff told us there were regular meetings and information was provided to ensure they were up to date about any changes in care. Records were up to date and stored securely.