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Archived: Alpha Homecare Limited & Alpha Nursing Agency

Bentham House, 97 Heaton Street, Standish, Wigan, Greater Manchester, WN6 0DA (01257) 473355

Provided and run by:
Alpha Homecare Limited

Important: This service was previously registered at a different address - see old profile

All Inspections

21 November 2013

During a routine inspection

Most of the people who received a service from Alpha home care and nursing agency were satisfied with the care and support they received. We spoke with 10 service users and 14 family members about their experiences of the agency. The comments we heard included 'When they wash me they keep me covered as much as they can doing half and half. They close any curtains or door and do respect my needs'; 'You can set the clock by them'; 'They can't sit down, they are too busy, but we do get chance to have a nice conversation whilst they're doing things' and 'They give Mum the confidence in getting up for the day. They are trained to handle her. I was struggling but the two carers manage her really well.'

We received some negative comments but these were in the minority. The negative comments related to staffing issues when the regular staff were not at work and staff not always letting people know when they were going to be late.

We found that the service had effective systems in place for obtaining consent, controlling the spread of infection, quality monitoring and responding to complaints.

17 October 2012

During a routine inspection

We spoke with three people who were using the service. They all spoke very highly of their care staff. We were told 'It is a very good service.': 'All I can say is that everybody is very good' and 'They are absolutely marvellous.' One person told us that she had recommended the service to some of her neighbours who were now also receiving the service.'

Staff from the local authority told us that they visited the service as a part of their monitoring of the quality of services and were pleased with the changes that had been made at Alpha Home Care and Nursing Agency.

People told us that they had care files in their homes that care staff checked and signed when they visited. We found that people receiving the service had a plan of care that contained detailed information about the way in which their needs were met. People confirmed that they were given appropriate choices when staff visited and we found that these choices were recorded in the plan of care.

18 June 2012

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We spoke with 20 people who were receiving services from Alpha Home Care. We visited six people in their own homes and we spoke with 14 people on the telephone. All of the people who we spoke with were happy with the service. People told us 'The carers are fine, I know them all', 'The people looking after me are absolutely brilliant' and 'The carers are excellent and very respectful.'

Three people told us that they previously had problems with late calls and missed visits. They said that a few months ago they often did not know who was coming and at what time they would arrive. One person told us that things had changed dramatically over the past five weeks. He added that 'It is the best it has ever been in the two years that I have been having the service.'

People told us that they were able to speak with the office staff if they needed to do so. One person told us that the office staff did not ring to say that the carer was going to be late even although the carer had asked the office staff to let people know.

People told us that they felt safe with carers coming into their homes. One person who was cared for in bed said 'I trust all of the carers who visit me.' One relative told us about an incident where the care worker was able to demonstrate that they were trustworthy.

11 April 2012

During an inspection in response to concerns

The people we spoke with who received care from this agency told us that they were happy the service. One person said 'It is a very good service.' Another person said it was a 'Belting service.' One person named their care worker and said that she was like a mother to him. We were also told that the service had 'Brilliant carers.'

We asked people if they thought that they were treated with dignity and respect. One person said that 'They treat my husband lovely.' Another person said 'I am treated with all the respect in the world.' One couple told us 'We are both treated with much dignity and respect.'

The people who we spoke with were complimentary about the knowledge and skills of the care workers. One person told us that 'Staff know what they are doing.' We also heard 'The agency always sends someone who knows what they are doing.'

23 January 2012

During an inspection in response to concerns

People said they were satisfied with the care staff from Alpha Homecare. They felt staff were usually punctual and knew how to do their jobs.

People felt staff treated them with respect, listened to what they said, and were flexible.

All the comments about the standard of support from care staff were positive.

We were told:

'The fact is the girls come and help, they respond to our requests, they're great,'

'We're comfortable with the staff.'

'I can't complain about anything, I couldn't manage without them.'

'I'm happy with the care, if I wasn't I would ring Alpha up.'

'The girls are great. They're helpful, I've got no problems with them.'

'We never get two strangers.'

Some people felt it was easy to contact the management and people in the Alpha the office.

They said:

'If I have a problem I ring the office and I know who to speak to.'

And

'We have never felt let down. The manager has come and worked in the home. And I know how to contact the office but never had a need to complain.'

However most people said they had problems contacting the office staff, the manager and supervising staff.

Peoples comments included:

'It's hard to get hold of people in the office.'

'I can ring and leave messages but no one ever gets back to me.'

And

'It's hard to get hold of people either they're not available or there's no answer.'

People also said it was rare for them to be contacted by senior staff about the quality of the service.

'The office never ever rings.'

'No one from the office at Alpha rings.'

'The administration is abysmal and I've not received any feedback from a questionnaire I returned a while ago.'

And

'I think it would be good to know from the office which staff are coming from day to day. The carers tell me but I think it would be better coming from the office.'

We discussed these matters with the management team. We were informed that the company had installed a new telephone system and this would record and monitor calls to the office. We also discussed the new rules that had been introduced to improve the running of the office and the availability of office staff, which means some problems should be solved.

We also discussed the need to monitor the effectiveness of these changes. The manager stated she expected an immediate reduction in complaints and this would help to indicate whether communication was improving.