About the service: This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to older adults, some living with the experience of dementia, people with learning disabilities and people with mental health needs. The majority of people had paid privately for their care. At the time of our inspection four people were using the service.People’s experience of using this service and our findings:
Relatives told us they were happy with the care that was provided by H&M Care Agency.
Safe recruitment practices were not always followed when recruiting staff.
The service was not always working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 which meant that people were not always supported to have their personal views taken into account when decisions about their care was being made.
Support plans did not always provide sufficient details about people’s background therefore staff may not have sufficient information to provide safe care and support.
The provider did not have effective quality assurance systems in place to monitor, manage and improve service delivery and to improve the care and support provided to people.
Staff understood the provider’s safeguarding policies and were familiar with the reporting procedures.
Staff had access to appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to help prevent the spread of infection.
Staff had access to training which was appropriate to their role. This included safeguarding, health and safety and moving and handling.
The provider had systems for handling complaints and responding to incidents and accidents which they said they would follow when complaints are made or incidents occur.
Relatives told us that people were treated with dignity and respect. They were also positive about the staff and they told us that staff had a caring attitude.
Rating at last inspection: This is the first inspection of the service.
Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection that was part of our inspection schedule.
Action we told the provider to take: During the inspection we found five breaches of regulations. These were in relation to safe care and treatment, fit and proper staff employed, consent to care, person centred care and good governance. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.
For more details please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk