21 January 2019
During a routine inspection
Barking Metropolitan Care Services Limited is a domiciliary care agency that was providing personal care to nine people at the time of the inspection.
People’s experience of using this service:
People told us they received safe care. Staff had completed safeguarding training and knew what action they should take and how to report any concerns they had.
Staff had been trained in a variety of areas and were knowledgeable about their roles and responsibilities. Systems were in place to support them and monitor their work.
People had risk assessments in place. Where risks had been identified there were plans to manage them effectively. There was an accident policy and a contingency plan to ensure the service could continue in the event of an emergency.
There were sufficient staff to meet people’s care and support needs. A system was in place to recruit suitable staff.
Staff sought people’s consent before providing support to them. People’s capacity to make decisions had been assessed.
People were supported to maintain nutritional and fluid intake. Staff treated people with dignity and respect and promoted their independence. People made their own decisions and staff were aware of people’s choices and care needs.
Care plans were detailed, specific to the person and reflected people’s choices and preferences. People were involved in planning their care and were supported by external health professionals to maintain their health and wellbeing.
The service had a complaints procedure. People, their relatives and staff knew how to complain. Quality assurance systems were in place to monitor the quality of the service, such as surveys, audits and spot checks.
There was an open and person-centred culture within the service. People, staff and relatives felt able to express their views. Feedback regarding the management of the service was positive.
Rating at last inspection:
Requires Improvement (report published 13 February 2018).
Why we inspected:
This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection. At the last inspection on 16 January 2018, the service was rated as requires improvement. We asked the provider to take action to make improvements with regard to time keeping as some people and relatives told us the staff did not always arrive and leave on time. We also asked them to improve the system for recording and monitoring staff visits as it was not working effectively, and this could put people at risk. During this inspection we found the actions have been completed.
Follow up:
We will monitor all intelligence received about the service to inform the assessment of the risk profile of the service and to ensure the next planned inspection is scheduled accordingly.
For more details, please see the full report which is on CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk.