Archived: Care Quality Services Sunderland

Updated 25 August 2021

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector and two Experts by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a large service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be available to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 19 April 2021 and ended on 10 June 2021. We visited the office location on 11 and 14 May 2021.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we held about the service including information submitted to CQC by the provider about serious injuries or other notifiable events. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

We sought feedback from the local authority contracts monitoring and safeguarding adults' teams and reviewed the information they provided. We contacted the local Healthwatch for their feedback. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection-

We spoke with 24 people who used the service and 32 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with five members of staff including the regional director, the quality manager, the registered manager and two field care supervisors. We also received feedback from six care staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included seven people’s care records and medicines records. We looked at five staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were also reviewed.

Following the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We reviewed training information, staff inductions, policies, surveys, newsletters, quality assurance records and various other documentation.

Updated 25 August 2021

About the service

Allied Health-Services LTD Sunderland is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care and support to people living in their own homes. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of inspection 172 people were receiving personal care.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People and relatives spoke positively about the service and felt it was safe and staff were caring. Comments from people included, “The carers are fantastic,” and, “The girls are so helpful, brilliant. I’d have nothing said against them.”

There were systems in place to keep people safe. Staff safeguarded people from abuse where possible. Risks to people’s health, safety and well-being were managed. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and safe recruitment processes were followed. Medicines were safely administered and managed. The provider learned from previous accidents and incidents to reduce future risks.

People’s needs were assessed before they received support. Staff received regular training and were supported through regular supervisions, observations and annual appraisals. Staff supported people with their nutritional needs and to access a range of health care professionals. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Staff supported people in a respectful, dignified manner. One person said, “They [staff] treat me with respect and kindness.” People were encouraged to maintain their independence and had advocates in place, where required.

People received person-centred care. Care plans detailed how people wanted to be supported by staff with different tasks. Complaints were investigated and actioned. People and relatives knew how to raise any concerns and felt confident in doing so.

People and relatives were happy with the service and felt it was well-managed. The registered manager promoted an open and honest culture and was approachable. The provider had an effective quality assurance process in place which included regular audits. People and relatives were regularly consulted about the quality of the service through surveys and reviews. Staff were involved in the ongoing development and improvement of the service through surveys and regular communication.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 15/10/2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection to formally rate the service.

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 we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.