LIM Independent Living and Community Care Services Limited

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• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We assessed all of the quality statements within this key question. Our rating for this question has improved to Good. People were treated well by staff. Staff were kind, caring and respected people’s rights to privacy and to be treated with dignity. Staff provided care and support to people in line with their individual needs and preferences. People had choice and control about how they wanted to receive care and support and staff respected their decisions about this. People were encouraged to do as much as they could for themselves, to maintain their independence and build strength and further independence to undertake the tasks of daily living. People were supported to understand their rights and how the service would make sure these were respected. People felt listened to by staff, who responded to people in an appropriate way when needed. Staff were well supported by the management team with their wellbeing, because managers understood the impact this could have on the safety and quality of care and support provided to people.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People told us staff treated them respectfully and with kindness and compassion. A family member told us, “[The staff] are kind and gentle, not rough. They always call him Mr [person’s name], tease him and have fun with him. They are always flexible, whatever I ask them to do they will do.” Another family member said, “Dad is really happy with the way they care for mum. The care workers sing to her in Jamaican. She responds by smiling and moving her arms.”

Staff spoke about people respectfully and with kindness. They told us how they supported people to maintain their dignity and privacy and ensured people’s comfort whilst receiving care. The management team undertook checks to seek assurances that people were treated with kindness and compassion by staff. The registered manager told us, “We do spot checks and we call people and do monthly monitoring to find out how they are getting on with their care workers.”

Health and social care professionals confirmed that when working with staff, staff treated people with respect and dignity. A partner agency told us, “Every staff member at the service treats people with kindness, dignity and compassion as many of the care workers go above and beyond the expectation when caring for people.”

People told us staff took account of people’s individual needs when supporting them, including their cultural heritage and any disabilities. A family member told us, “The care workers are aware dad is blind and whilst respecting his independence, they escort him to the bathroom, help him to shower and dress, they make sure things are placed in the right positions.” Another family member said, “Sometimes the care workers visit in their own time and batch cook and freeze West Indian food for mum and dad.”

Staff worked with people to reassure them and support their emotional and mental health in order to build a trusting, caring relationship. One staff member told us, “I said to [person using the service] ‘I’m here to help you.’ I keep telling her this and we have developed this relationship [where she is happy to receive support].”

Systems were in place to ensure people’s individual needs were obtained, understood and met when providing care and support to them. The management team undertook assessments, monitoring and reviews of people’s care and support needs, to make sure care plans reflected people’s individual needs and preferences. People’s care plans were current and instructed staff how people’s individual needs and preferences should be met when providing people with care and support.

Staff were respectful of people’s choices and how they lived their life. This included respecting their religion and what was important to them. A family member said, “Mum knows the staff well, they understand her needs and she makes sure she is heard. They respect that she prays every day.”

Staff supported people to maintain their independence and encouraged them to develop their strength and independence further where possible. A staff member told us, “I encourage my client to be as independent as possible. I was initially told to give her a bed bath, but I was like, she can walk, so we have encouraged her and she now has a walk in shower so she can have a shower instead of having to be washed in bed.”

Systems were in place to ensure people’s choices and decisions informed how their care and support should be provided. The management team undertook assessments, monitoring and reviews of people’s care and support needs, and used information about people’s likes and dislikes, their preferred routines and how they wished to spend their day, to plan people’s care and support. People’s care plans instructed staff, when providing care and support, to seek people’s consent, offer choice, and support people to do as much as they could and wanted to do for themselves.

People felt heard and that support was tailored to their individual needs. One person told us, “If there is anything I don’t want, they listen. If they give me a care worker I don’t like they change them. If I want to change my shopping day they let me.”

Staff told us they would try to accommodate and respond to any requests to change the support provided. This included being able to add additional visits or change the times of visits as much as possible, depending on staff availability.

Staff felt well supported and felt the management team considered their wellbeing. One staff member told us, “Our manager would come and get me after I’ve been with a person who is end of life because I’m emotionally exhausted and don’t have the energy to get public transport home.” The management team understood the importance and impact of staff wellbeing on the quality of support they provided. When staff were running late for calls, the management team were proactive in providing reassurances to staff to reduce any worry or stress. The registered manager told us, “It's about reducing pressure as we don’t want that reflected in the quality of their care.” When staff were unwell or had major life events that prevented them from being at work, the management team were compassionate and supportive. The quality manager said, “We don’t pressure staff if they are off sick and make sure they are fit and well to come back to work. We stay in touch and be supportive and be kind and caring. If they had bereavements in the family we try and support people and we try and celebrate important occasions and make staff feel valued.”

The provider encouraged a culture at the service where staff wellbeing was promoted, to support staff to deliver safe, high quality care to people. Staff were provided opportunities through supervision and team meetings to discuss their roles and the support they required to help them undertake their roles effectively. The management team reviewed staff leave to ensure staff were taking regular breaks from work. When allocating care calls, the management took account of staff with caring commitments to ensure care calls were scheduled around these.