Helping Hands Wimbledon

Helping Hands Wimbledon is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. This service specialises in supporting people living with dementia. At the time of the inspection, out of a total number of 49 people the service was supporting, 16 people were receiving support with personal care.

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 and their relative's told us that the management team's communication was not always affective and that they were not always provided with regular staff members to ensure consistent care delivery. Staff training needs required reviewing to ensure they had the necessary knowledge for the job. We made recommendations for this.

People felt safe supported by their regular carers. They received support with managing their medicines as prescribed. There were robust staff recruitment procedures in place. Staff had the necessary guidance to effectively manage risks associated with infection control. Risk assessments were individualised and provided guidance for staff on how to mitigate the potential risks to people. However information was not included in relation to how the service assessed the level of risk and also the areas being looked into during the environmental and fire safety risk assessments.

Initial assessments were carried out to gather personal information about people before the service started supporting them. Care records reflected the support people required to attend to their health and nutritional 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 felt valued by their regular staff members. People's privacy was respected and they had support to maintain their independence skills. However their choice of gender care was not always adhered to by the service.

Care plans were person- centred and reflected people's choices and life-styles. Systems were in place for recording the actions taken when a complaint was received. End of life care wishes were discussed where people felt comfortable to do so.

People had good relationships with their regular staff members who attended to their care with compassion. Systems and processes were in place to monitor the care being delivered to people. Healthcare professionals were involved as and when necessary to support people's well-being.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 23 July 2018).

You can read the report from our last inspection, by selecting the 'all reports' link for Helping Hands Wimbledon on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Why we inspected

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

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection program. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

Not everyone using the service received a regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided. Helping Hands Wimbledon was providing personal care to seven people at the time of this inspection.

This was our first visit to the service since it registered with CQC in November 2016.

A registered manager was 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 legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People told us they felt safe and were treated well by staff who were polite and kind. They said they would recommend this service to other people. Relatives were positive about the service provided to their family members.

People were protected from abuse because staff received training in safeguarding, so knew what action to take if they were concerned about someone being abused, mistreated or neglected. Staff were recruited safely. Appropriate employment checks were carried out to help make sure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people.

Staff received training in the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and understood the importance of gaining people’s consent before assisting them.

People’s health and social care needs were holistically assessed. Risks associated with their care were monitored and managed well. People had risk assessments in place so staff were made aware of any hazards that could affect the delivery of safe care. Personalised care plans supported staff to meet people’s needs and preferences.

People told us staff were competent and had the skills and experience to meet their needs. Staff, were positive about the training and support they received from the management team.

Staff had access to personal protective equipment (PPE) for the prevention and control of infection.

People and their relatives felt able to raise any concerns or complaints. There was a procedure in place for people to follow if they wanted to raise any issues.

The service promoted a culture that was person centred, open and inclusive. People using the service and their relatives said that Helping Hands Wimbledon was well managed and responsive to their needs.