This inspection took place on the 29 and 30 June 2016 and was announced. The provider was given short notice of the visit. This was because we needed to be sure key staff would be available at the office. The service was previously inspected in February 2014, when no breaches of legal requirements were identified. There was a registered manager who managed the day to day operations of the service. 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.
Home Enabling Service is a domiciliary care service, providing care to people in their own homes across the borough of Rotherham. Support packages are designed to be short term, typically to assist people regaining independence after an injury or illness. At the time of the inspection there were 61 people using the service.
We received some very good feedback from people we spoke with. They told us that the service was reliable and the staff were caring and respectful. One person said, “They saved our life. We were lost and did not know how we were going to cope. They [the staff] came, asked us what help we needed and it was there when we came home from hospital.”
People told us they felt safe knowing that they [the staff] would do their best to enable them to become independent again. We saw there were robust systems in place to manage risks to people. For example, the service organised for a key safe to be fitted which meant staff could gain access and the person did not have to leave their door unlocked. This demonstrated that they had acted on the information gained at the assessment to ensure the person was safe when they returned home from a stay in hospital.
The service actively involved people in their assessment which enabled them to make choices about the support they needed to help them back to independence. The service was flexible which meant times of visits could change if people had to attend hospital or any other health related appointments.
The registered manager told us that all staff were trained to undertake risk assessments which meant there was no delay in identifying equipment to help re-enable people who used the service. The staff were able to liaise with people’s GP’s and occupational therapist to make sure people obtained the equipment required to keep them safe while maintaining their independence.
A continual review of people’s support meant that the service could change the length of the visits as required to enable people to reach their full level of independence. Support staff were also able to signpost people to other agencies if they felt a person needed ongoing support once the programme of re-enablement was complete.
People were supported to take their medication safely and the care records identified the level of support needed for each person. The service ensured that priority for visits were given to support medication calls to ensure that people’s medication needs was given at the time prescribed. For example, Parkinson specific medications which may be needed to kick start people’s mobility. Also people who were required to take their insulin at a specific time.
Staff told us they felt supported and they could raise any concerns with the registered manager and felt that they were listened to. People told us they were aware of the complaints procedure and said staff would assist them if they needed to use it. People told us that they had contacted the office and found staff were helpful when dealing with any questions about the service.
People told us that staff were very professional and always respected their dignity when undertaking personal care tasks. Staff we spoke with were highly motivated to provide a good service to people they supported.
Staff working at the service had been recruited safely and were able to complete training to meet the support people needed. The service also enabled staff to undertake nationally recognised training to help them progress in their work. The registered manager told us that there was very little turnover of staff and most staff had worked for the organisation for a good number of years.
The registered manager was very committed to continuous improvement and feedback from people, whether positive or negative, and was used as an opportunity for improvement. The registered manager demonstrated a good understanding of the importance of effective quality assurance systems. There were processes in place to monitor quality and understand the experiences of people who used the service. The registered manager demonstrated strong values and a desire to learn about and implement best practice throughout the service.