Helping Hands Lincoln, a domiciliary care agency supporting 50 people with personal care, was rated Good across all five key questions at its first inspection following registration. Minor areas for improvement included communication care plan detail, occasional unfamiliar carers covering calls, and ensuring complaint outcomes are fed back to people.
Concerns (4)
minor
Staff competency
: “some people and their families said they had been supported by a carer's who had not been before. They said they had needed to talk the carer through what was needed.”
minorComplaints handling: “People who had raised concerns said that they felt they had been dealt with effectively but that they did not always get told of an outcome.”
minorCare planning: “some of the communication care plans we reviewed would benefit from being more detailed... one person's care plan said carers should observe nonverbal cues, but not what these cues might be”
minorMissed or late visits: “Some people said that on occasions staff were late but that they were always contacted if staff were going to be more than 10 minutes late.”
Strengths
· People and families reported feeling safe with carers supporting them at home
· No missed care calls; people contacted if staff were going to be late
· Robust safe recruitment processes and pre-employment checks
· Medicines administered safely by trained, competent staff with audits in place
· Staff trained in safeguarding and infection control, with consistent PPE use
Quality-Statement breakdown (22)
safe: Systems and processes to safeguard people from the risk of abuseGood
safe: Staffing and recruitmentGood
safe: Using medicines safelyGood
safe: Preventing and controlling infectionGood
safe: Learning lessons when things go wrongGood
effective: Assessing people's needs and choices; delivering care in line with standards, guidance and the lawGood
effective: Staff support: induction, training, skills and experienceGood
effective: Supporting people to eat and drink enough to maintain a balanced dietGood
effective: Staff working with other agencies; supporting people to access healthcareGood
effective: Ensuring consent to care and treatment in line with law and guidanceGood
caring: Ensuring people are well treated and supported; respecting equality and diversityGood
caring: Supporting people to express their views and be involved in making decisions about their careGood
caring: Respecting and promoting people's privacy, dignity and independenceGood
responsive: Planning personalised care to ensure people have choice and control and to meet their needs and preferencesGood
responsive: Improving care quality in response to complaints or concernsGood
responsive: Meeting people's communication needsGood
responsive: End of life care and supportGood
well-led: Promoting a positive culture that is person-centred, open, inclusive and empoweringGood
well-led: Duty of candour, roles, quality, performance, risks and regulatory requirementsGood
well-led: Engaging and involving people using the service, the public and staffGood
well-led: Continuous learning and improving careGood