First inspection of Norfolk Affinity Care Services Ltd, a small domiciliary care agency supporting ten people, rated Good across all five key questions. Minor improvement areas were identified around signing care plans, recording induction sign-off, developing end of life care provision, and embedding structured spot checks.
Concerns (5)
minor
Record keeping
: “Care plans stated they had been discussed with people and agreed. People confirmed this had taken place, but records were not signed by the people concerned.”
minorStaff training: “they were not expected to provide support and care until they felt confident, although this was not recorded on their induction training record.”
minorEnd-of-life care: “Care plans did not have a section for end of life care... Staff had not yet received end of life training”
minorStaffing levels: “Some staff worked a high number of hours each week... The provider has given us assurances they will continue to monitor this to ensure staff are not too tired to carry out their roles safely.”
minorGovernance: “Structured spot checks were not yet fully embedded but all senior staff, including the registered manager, were involved in care shifts”
Strengths
· Person-centred care meeting Right support, right care, right culture principles
· Robust safeguarding procedures and well-managed risk assessments
· Safe medicines administration with detailed records and competency checks
· Reliable care calls with consistent small staff teams; calls not missed or cut short
· Strong partnership working with health and social care professionals
Quality-Statement breakdown (23)
safe: Systems and processes to safeguard people from the risk of abuseGood
safe: Assessing risk, safety monitoring and managementGood
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 to provide consistent, effective, timely careGood
effective: Ensuring consent to care and treatment in line with law and guidanceGood
caring: Ensuring people are well treated and supported; 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 control and to meet their needs and preferencesGood
responsive: Meeting people's communication needsGood
responsive: Supporting people to develop and maintain relationships to avoid social isolationGood
responsive: Improving care quality in response to complaints or concernsGood
responsive: End of life care and supportGood
well-led: Promoting a positive culture that is person-centred, open, inclusive and empoweringGood
well-led: How the provider understands and acts on the duty of candourGood
well-led: Managers and staff being clear about their roles, and understanding quality performance, risks and regulatory requirementsGood
well-led: Continuous learning and improving careGood