Archived: Stockton Continuing Home Care Service

The service is registered to provide personal care to people living in their own homes. The service can provide care and support to adults, children and young people, people with physical and mental health problems and people with learning disabilities. The service offers a continuing care and a re-ablement service to people who have had deterioration in their health for whatever reason and require assistance and support.

The service were providing care packages to three people for continuing homecare and 19 people for re-ablement which is a six week package of support to people who have had a period of illness/injury that has resulted in them requiring support at home until they regain their independence. At the end of the six week period if people require further support this can be arranged following a meeting

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Assessments were undertaken to identify people’s care and support needs. Care records reviewed contained information about the person's likes, dislikes and personal choices. Care plan records were detailed and person centred which meant they were individual to the needs of the person.

There were enough staff employed to provide support and ensure that people’s needs were met. Most staff had worked at the service for a number of years.

There were systems and processes in place to protect people from the risk of harm. Staff were aware of the different types of abuse and what they would do if they witnessed any abuse.

Prior to the package of care commencing, environmental risk assessments of the person’s home were carried out. Safety checks looked at among other things equipment to be used and general environment. This meant that the registered provider took steps which ensured the premises was safe for people and staff.

There were risk assessments in place for people who used the service. The risk assessments and care plans had been reviewed and updated on a regular basis. Risk assessments covered areas such as bathing, smoking, going out in the community and food preparation. This meant that staff had the documentation and guidance they needed to help people to remain safe.

Systems were in place for the management of medicines so that people received their medicines safely. Care Records we reviewed contained detail of people’s medicines, how they should be administered and what time they should be taken.

Staff had received regular and recent supervision and also spot checks to make sure they were doing their job correctly. Supervision is a process, usually a meeting, by which an organisation provide guidance and support to staff.

Staff were up to date with most training. Staff told us they had received training which had provided them with the knowledge and skills to provide care and support to the people they visited. Robust recruitment and selection procedures were in place and we saw that appropriate checks had been undertaken before staff began work. The checks included two references from previous employers and DBS checks which ensured staff employed were safe to work with vulnerable people.

The registered manager and staff we spoke with had an understanding of the principles and responsibilities in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. The registered manager told us that staff had been trained in the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. MCA is legislation to protect and empower people who may not be able to make their own decisions, particularly about their health care, welfare or finances.

People we spoke with told us that staff were kind and caring and treated people with dignity and respect. Staff arrived at the time agreed and stayed for the time allocated.

Staff at the service worked with other healthcare professionals to support the people they were caring for.

The registered provider had a system in place for responding to people’s concerns and complaints. People told us they knew how to complain and felt confident that staff would respond and take action to support them.

There were systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided. The registered manager sought the views of people who used the service. Staff told us that the service had an open and supportive culture.