Background to this inspection
Updated
17 October 2019
The inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 13 September 2019 and ended on 20 September 2019. We visited the office location on 18 September 2019.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with two people who used the service and eight relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with seven members of staff including the provider and registered manager.
We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and medication records. We looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including complaints files, accident records and audits.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and incident analysis.
Updated
17 October 2019
About the service
Your Care Services is a domiciliary care service providing personal care and support to people living in their own homes. People required support from the service because they had either complex physical health needs or were living with Dementia. They were providing a service to 18 people at the time of our inspection. 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 felt safe using the service and staff understood what their responsibilities were in relation to keeping people safe. People had their risks assessed and managed to ensure they received personal care and support safely. Staff administered people’s medicines safely and prevented people from the risk of cross infection. There were enough staff to provide peoples care and the service had systems in place to review any incidents and learn when things went wrong.
People had their needs assessed and plans put in place to meet them including assessing and supporting people with specific health conditions and meeting nutritional needs. The service worked in partnership with people, relatives and other agencies to support people's good health and well-being and provide consistent care.
Staff were trained and competency was checked following an induction into the role to ensure staff had the skills to do their job well and effectively meet people's 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 received a service which was personalised and met their individual needs and preferences.
People were involved in decisions about their care and people and relatives were communicated with effectively. People and relatives told us they had regular staff who were kind, understood their needs and were competent in providing personalised care.
People received responsive care and support tailored to their individual needs and preferences. People were supported to go out into the community and do things they enjoyed. The provider had systems in place to manage and resolve complaints. People receiving end of life care were supported effectively.
People and their relatives spoke highly of the service and had opportunities to provide feedback and action was taken to address issues which were raised. Systems were in place to assess and monitor the quality and delivery of care to people. Improvements to the service were made when needed.
The registered manager was committed to providing good care to support people to achieve the best possible outcomes. The provider adopted a learning culture and worked in partnership with people, relatives and other agencies to ensure people had person centred care.
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 21 February 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.