AOK Care Ltd

Updated 21 May 2022

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

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.

What we did before the inspection

Prior to the inspection we reviewed information and evidence we already held about this service, which had been collected via our ongoing monitoring of care services. This included notifications sent to us by the service. Notifications are changes, events or incidents that the provider is legally obliged to send to us without delay. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection-

We spoke mostly with people’s relatives to help us understand the experience of people who could not speak with us. We spoke with two relatives and one person who used the service. We spoke with the registered manager and care coordinator. We reviewed three care records of people using the service, four personnel files of care workers, audits and other records about the management of the service.

After the inspection –

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We received information relating to the provider’s governance systems and some care records. This information was used as part of our inspection.

Updated 21 May 2022

AOK Care Ltd is a small domiciliary care agency providing personal care to mainly Somali speaking people in their home. During the day of our inspection three people received the regulated activity 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

The service did not always ensure that people’s needs were assessed in sufficient detail and a plan to manage such risk was not always in place. The service currently did not administer medicines. However, people were assisted to take their medicines by staff prompting them to do so. The service failed to provide comprehensive medicines assessments and guidance for staff in how to support people safely when being prompted to take their medicines. While the service communicated regularly with people who used the service and relatives, a formal quality assurance system was not fully implemented.

People who used the service and relatives told us that they were protected from the risk of abuse. Sufficient staff were deployed to meet people’s needs. We were assured that the service followed safe infection and control practices. The service had a system in place to monitor and assess accidents and incidents.

Staff had access to training to gain the relevant skills and knowledge to support people who used the service. Where people received assistance to eat and drink this had been documented in care plans and people had access to food and drink, they liked. 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 and relatives told us that care workers were kind and caring and their wishes had been taken in consideration and respected.

People received person centred care. Their assessments showed they had been involved in the assessment process. Care plans described how people should be supported so that their privacy and dignity were upheld. However, as mentioned above, greater detail was required to ensure staff had all required information to support people holistically.

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

Rating at last inspection and update This service was registered with us on 26 August 2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned comprehensive inspection

Enforcement and Recommendations

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.

We have identified breaches in relation to the assessment and management of risk, the safe management of medicines and effective quality assurance monitoring and assessment.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.