29 September 2016
During a routine inspection
Prime Care Community Services Limited – Worthing is domiciliary care service that provides support to people in Worthing and the immediate local area. At the time of our visit the service was supporting 24 people with personal care.
The service had 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.
When there were changes in people’s care and support needs, these were communicated quickly and effectively to staff. We found, however, that records had not always been updated to reflect the care being delivered. This, along with incomplete information in some staff records, was an area requiring improvement.
People spoke highly of the service. They told us that they enjoyed good relationships with the staff who visited them and that they would recommend the service. When we visited people in their homes, we observed that they enjoyed warm and friendly relationships with staff.
People received a safe service. Staff understood local safeguarding procedures. Risks to people’s safety were assessed and reviewed. People received their medicines safely and at the right time.
There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and to offer flexibility if a person needed to change their call time. People appreciated the continuity in the staff who visited them and staff understood how people wished to be supported.
People had confidence in the staff who supported them. Staff received training to enable them to deliver effective care.
Staff understood how consent should be considered in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. Staff supported people to prepare meals and to eat and drink if required. Where people could benefit from additional support, referrals were made to other healthcare professionals such as the GP or community nurses.
People were involved in planning their care and determining how they wished to receive support. Staff supported people to be as independent as they were able and were mindful of their privacy. People told us that staff treated them respectfully.
People felt able to contact the deputy manager if they had concerns and said that they received a quick response. People knew how to make a complaint.
The deputy and registered managers monitored the quality of the service and used feedback from people and staff to identify improvements and act on them. Senior staff carried out spot checks on care workers to monitor the delivery of care.
We found a breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we have told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.