Archived: Crisis East

Crisis East is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to people living in their own homes in the short term before a permanent package of care can be arranged. The service provides support to older people and those living with dementia or a physical disability. At the time of our inspection there were 73 people using the service.

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.

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

People were not always protected from the risk of harm or abuse. Safeguarding referrals were not always made where there had been an allegation of abuse. Recruitment practices were not always robust and relevant checks had not always been undertaken. Risk assessments relating to people’s health needs and the environment were in place, but these records required more detail to keep people safe. We made a recommendation about this.

People’s needs were assessed and recorded in their support plans, but they required more detail regarding communication and mobility to ensure staff could support them safely. We made a recommendation about this.

Care was not always personalised to meet the needs of the people who used service. People felt their needs had not always been considered which impacted on the care they received. We made a recommendation about this. People’s communication needs were not always explored in enough detail and care records did not evidence how to ensure people could communicate effectively with staff who supported them. We made a recommendation about this. We received mixed feedback on the complaints process at the service. Complaints that involved allegations of abuse were not always escalated to the local authority.

Quality monitoring processes were not always effective as they didn’t identify the issues we found relating to safeguarding and safe recruitment. The registered manager had not always notified the CQC of notifiable events.

Infection prevention and control practices were effective, and the registered manager understood the importance of using a lessons learned process when things go wrong.

Records evidenced people were supported to eat and drink enough to maintain a balanced diet. Staff received training that was relevant to their role and had regular supervision from the registered manager. The service worked alongside other agencies to ensure that care and support met peoples changing needs.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People were supported by staff who respected their privacy, dignity, and independence. People praised the staff approach and spoke highly of their attitude towards providing care. People felt involved in providing feedback on the service they received and there were plans in place to improve this process further.

Staff spoke positively about the registered managers approach and told us that they felt valued and supported. The service understood the importance of partnership working and we saw involvement from other agencies to provide effective care to people.

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 16 March 2022 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to safeguarding, fit and proper persons employed, good governance and notification of other incidents.

We have made recommendations regarding assessing risk, person centred care and meeting people’s communication needs.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.