We carried out a review of the data available to us about In Caring Hands St Austell on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about In Caring Hands St Austell, you can give feedback on this service.
In Caring Hands is a care home that provides short-term respite care for up to four younger adults who live with their families in the community, as well as short-term care to support people who are transitioning from children to adult care services. The building is a bungalow in a residential street in St Austell, close to local amenities and shops. People using the service have a diagnosis of a profound and multiple learning disability. This includes sensory or physical disability and complex health needs.
The service is also a domiciliary care service that provides personal care and support to some people, who use the respite service, when they are living at home in the community. At the time of this inspection three people were using the respite service and two people the domiciliary care service.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People were supported to be as independent as possible and have control over their lives. People's dignity was respected, and staff encouraged and supported people to make decisions and choices about how they spent their time.
Care plans were accurate and kept under regular review, with the involvement of the person and their family. They provided staff with comprehensive guidance to ensure people’s needs were met. Risks were identified and staff had clear instructions to help them support people to reduce the risk of avoidable harm.
Staff were recruited safely. The service had continued to recruit throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure there were enough staff to cover for sickness or for staff who needed to shield or self-isolate. Staff were supported by a system of induction, training, supervisions, appraisals and staff meetings. Staff were appropriately trained, and their competency regularly checked, to administer people’s medicines and carry out specific tasks to ensure people’s complex health needs were met.
Cleaning and infection control procedures had been updated in line with COVID-19 guidance to help protect people, visitors and staff from the risk of infection. Bedrooms were deep cleaned between each respite stay. Government guidance about COVID-19 testing for people, staff and visitors was being followed.
People’s relatives and staff told us management were approachable and they listened to them when they had any concerns or ideas. All feedback was used to make continuous improvements to the service.
We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.
This service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture.
The Right support:
The model of care and setting maximised people’s choice, control and independence. Staff supported people to make choices about their daily lives and engage in activities that they enjoyed and promoted their independence.
Right care:
People received good quality person-centred care that promoted their dignity, privacy and human rights. Each person had a member of staff specifically allocated to support them for each shift during their respite stay. Staff knew people well and understood their individual ways of communicating which meant people received care that was individualised to their needs and wishes.
Right culture:
While on respite stay people lived in a service where the ethos, values, attitudes of the management team and care staff ensured people led confident, inclusive and empowered lives. Staff created an environment that inspired people to understand and achieve their goals and ambitions.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
This service was registered with us on 29/04/2019 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection.
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor intelligence 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.