Background to this inspection
Updated
12 April 2023
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 completed by an 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.
Registered Manager
This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.
At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.
Notice of inspection
We gave a short period notice of the inspection so the registered manager could contact people and their relatives to ask them to agree to talk with us on the phone, during the inspection process.
What we did before the inspection
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 reviewed information we held about this service since it registered and contacted social care commissioners to provide feedback. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with the registered manager, 2 members of senior care staff and 3 care staff members. We sought feedback from 6 people who use the service and 5 relatives on their experience of the care provided. We reviewed a range of records related to the service people received. These included 6 people’s medicines administration records, 4 people’s care plans, staff training records, 3 staff recruitment records and various audits in place to oversee and monitor the service.
Updated
12 April 2023
About the service
Apex Prime Care - Basingstoke is a home care service providing personal care to people in their own home. The service provides support to people with a range of needs including older people who may be living with dementia, a physical disability, younger people, or people who have a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder. At the time of our inspection there were 72 people using the service.
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 received safe care from staff who knew them and their needs well. Where people required support with medicines this was provided, however we have recommended the provider continues to review some aspects of medicines recording practices.
We received consistently positive feedback that people were treated with kindness, dignity, and respect from staff when meeting their care 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; However, we have recommended the provider reviews their policies and systems.
People received care that was responsive to their needs. Care plans captured people’s needs, choices and preferences in a person-centred way and ensured staff knew what was important to people and how they would like their needs met.
The provider maintained oversight of the service people received and the registered manager created a culture that was open and transparent. Audits were conducted to monitor and review the care provided to people, and where we provided feedback during the inspection the registered manager was engaged and took proactive steps to address our findings.
We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.
Right Support: Model of Care and setting that maximises people’s choice, control and independence.
Right Care: Care is person-centred and promotes people’s dignity, privacy, and human rights. We received consistent feedback from people and their relatives that staff supported people in a kind, respectful and dignified manner.
Right Culture: The ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of leaders and care staff ensure people using services lead confident, inclusive, and empowered lives. The value of people’s independence was at the heart of service delivery.
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 the service under the previous provider was Good (published on 25 June 2018).
Why we inspected
This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.
Recommendations
We have recommended the provider reviews medicines recording practises to ensure they are robust and ensure they fully embed the principles of the MCA and supporting best practice guidance.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.