Golden Care Group's first inspection rated the service Requires Improvement overall, with breaches of Regulation 17 (good governance) and Regulation 19 (fit and proper persons employed) due to unsafe recruitment practices and ineffective audits. Care delivery was rated Good for effective, caring and responsive, with positive feedback about person-centred support, medication management and staff conduct.
Concerns (6)
critical
Governance
: “The provider failed to ensure sufficient oversight to monitor the quality and safety of the service. This was a breach of regulation 17 (Good governance)”
criticalStaff competency: “Staff were not always recruited safely. We looked at four staff files during the inspection and identified concerns with each one.”
criticalSafeguarding: “One member of staff had also started working for the service prior to their disclosure barring service (DBS) check being in place.”
moderateSupervision / appraisal: “The December 2021 audit identified further improvements were required in relation to staff supervision frequency. No appropriate action had not been taken to address this.”
moderateLeadership: “the service did not have a registered manager. The previous registered manager had de-registered shortly before our inspection.”
minorRecord keeping: “we asked the provider to update this to show the dates training was completed and when updates were due”
Strengths
· Enough staff to deliver care safely with no late or missed visits reported
· Medicines administered safely with accurate MAR records and competency assessments
· Sufficient PPE available and routine COVID-19 testing in place
· Positive feedback from people and relatives about caring, dignified support
· Person-centred care plans with personalised information about hobbies and interests
Quality-Statement breakdown (19)
safe: Staffing and recruitmentRequires improvement
safe: Using medicines safelyGood
safe: Assessing risk, safety monitoring and management; Preventing and controlling infectionGood
safe: Systems and processes to safeguard people from the risk of abuse; Learning lessons when things go wrongGood
effective: Staff support: induction, training, skills and experienceGood
effective: Ensuring consent to care and treatment in line with law and guidanceGood
effective: Supporting people to eat and drink enough to maintain a balanced dietGood
effective: Assessing people's needs and choices; delivering care in line with standardsGood
caring: Ensuring people are well treated and supportedGood
caring: Respecting equality and diversity; Respecting and promoting people's privacy, dignity and independenceGood
caring: Supporting people to express their views and be involved in making decisions about their careGood
responsive: Planning personalised care to ensure people have choice and controlGood
responsive: Meeting people's communication needsGood
responsive: Improving care quality in response to complaints or concernsGood
responsive: End of life care and supportGood
well-led: Continuous learning and improving care; Engaging and involving peopleRequires improvement
well-led: Managers and staff being clear about their roles and understanding quality performance, risks and regulatory requirementsRequires improvement
well-led: Promoting a positive culture that is person-centred, open, inclusive and empoweringGood