18 February 2015
During a routine inspection
The inspection was announced and took place on the 18 February 2015.
Burley’s Home Care Services provides personal care and support to people who live in their own homes. At the time of the inspection they were providing personal care to 46 people.
Burley’s Home Care Services has a registered manager in post. 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 a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People using the service told us that they felt safe. Safeguarding training and procedures were in place and care workers were able to identify and recognise signs of abuse. Personalised risk assessments in people’s care plans detailed actions that needed to be taken to ensure a person’s safety when care was being delivered.
There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and there were contingency plans in place in the event that a care worker was delayed or unable to deliver care. The service had purchased a company car for care workers to use, if required, to ensure continuity of care for people using the service.
We found that thorough staff recruitment procedures were in place so that people were protected from the employment of unsuitable staff. Interviews were conducted in order to establish a care workers professional and personal suitability for the role.
Members of staff responsible for the administration of medicines had received additional training to ensure that people’s medicines were being managed correctly.
Care workers understood person centred care and were assisted by management and training to deliver this. Care workers received robust training which made them feel competent in delivering care. Staff had also received training about the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and were able to discuss what a change in a person’s capacity meant for their day to day decision making.
People’s nutritional needs were met by staff with an understanding of their preferences and food was prepared to a high standard.
When people’s additional health care needs were identified the registered manager engaged with other health and social care agencies and professionals to maintain people’s safety and welfare.
People told us that their care was provided to a high standard. The registered manager and care workers were able to identify and discuss the importance of maintaining people’s respect and privacy at all times. This included taking time to build a personal rapport with a person using the service to install confidence in their abilities.
Care plans were personalised to each individual and contained detailed information to assist care workers to provide care in a manner that respected that person’s individual needs and wishes. Relatives were involved at the care planning stage and during regular reviews.
The registered manager’s vision and values were communicated to care workers.
Quality assurance processes were in place to gather, capture and then respond to concerns when they were received. People told us that their feedback was welcomed and issues addressed when required.
People knew there was an on call service in an emergency. Care workers felt supported by this service especially at weekends or out of hours.