Background to this inspection
Updated
4 March 2018
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.
We gave the service 48 hours' notice because the location provides a domiciliary care service and we wanted to visit the office, talk to staff and visit people who used the service in their own home.
We visited the office location on 31 January 2018 to see the registered manager and office staff; and to review care records, management monitoring, policies and procedures. We also visited people in their own homes. On 01 February 2018, we spoke with people and their relatives on the telephone to assess their views.
One inspector carried out this inspection.
Before the inspection, we reviewed the Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We also reviewed information we held including safeguarding information and notifications made to the Care Quality Commission. A notification is information about important events, which the service is required to send us by law.
We spoke to eight people who used the service and four relatives both on the telephone and during visits to people in their own homes. We also spoke with 14 members of staff including the registered manager, service manager, social worker, care coordinators, support workers and senior support workers. We also spoke with and received email feedback from stakeholders such as local community Health and social care professionals.
We looked at policies, care records including medicines management, complaints, staff recruitment and training as well as quality and safety monitoring records.
Updated
4 March 2018
This inspection took place on 31 January and 01 February 2018 and was announced.
This was the first inspection of this service since it was registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in 2015.
The Cambridgeshire Reablement Service (Ely) is located within the Princess of Wales Hospital in Ely. This service provides short-term personal care support for people living in the community. Its primary aim is to promote independence so that people can remain living in their own home, help people recover their independence following illness, discharge from hospital and prevent unnecessary admission to hospital and long-term care facilities. Where some people required longer-term care, the service also provided this where deemed necessary to enable continued improvement and where access to long-term agencies was not available. At the time of our inspection there were 36 people using the service.
There was a registered manager. 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.
People had their needs assessed and reviewed so that staff knew how to support them to regain their independence and improve their daily living skills. People's support plans contained personalised goals. However, further work was needed to reduce risks to people’s health, welfare and safety as only brief information was provided in care plans to guide staff in the safe management of people’s medicines.
Without exception, we received only positive comments from people and their relatives about the quality of the service they received. The management team were dedicated in creating a positive, open culture with people at the heart of the service. The management team were positive role models demonstrating the values and standards they expected staff to embody by focussing on continuous improvement leading to positive outcomes for people.
Staff were caring, compassionate and creative in overcoming obstacles and finding opportunities to go ‘the extra mile' in order to promote people's independence and wellbeing. People told us they valued their relationships with staff and they were treated with dignity and respect. Staff were dedicated, skilled and empathic towards the people they supported.
This was a highly responsive service that worked in partnership with other health and social care providers to design and implement a programme that helped reduce avoidable hospital admissions and for people following discharge from hospital to return home and regain their independent living skills. The management team understood the crucial role of working in partnership with people, families and other health and social care professionals. This ensured joined up working, enabling people access to appropriate services and to regain their confidence and independence.
Staff knew how to recognise and report abuse. Staff had been provided with training and were regularly assessed to ensure they remained competent. There was a system to ensure that staff received further training to update their skills. The provider's recruitment process was followed and this meant that people using the service received care from suitable staff. There was a sufficient number of staff to meet people’s needs.
People received care and support from staff who were trained, skilled, experienced and knowledgeable within the roles they were employed to perform. Staff knew the people they supported well and had received the necessary training to equip them for their roles. People were supported by staff who were kind and compassionate in their approach. Staff were supported by the management team with regular staff meetings, supervision and annual appraisals. They were also supported with an effective and responsive out of hours on call system.
There were quality assurance systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service and to drive improvements. The management team used feedback as an opportunity to learn and improve. People were consulted about how their care was delivered and given opportunities to air their views. The registered manager used feedback people had given in order to implement positive changes. Where people had concerns or complaints, these were investigated thoroughly and any lessons learnt with action plans in place to ensure continued improvement of the service.