Archived: Augusta Care Limited

Updated 29 June 2016

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 14 June 2016 and was announced. The provider was given 24 hours’ notice because the location provides a supported living and domiciliary care service; we needed to be sure that someone would be in.

Before the inspection we looked at all of the information that we had about the service. This included information from notifications received by us. A notification is information about important events which the provider is required to send to us by law. Also before the inspection the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

Prior to the inspection we made contact with a local authority monitoring officer; this was to help with the planning of the inspection and to gain their views about how people were being looked after. Also before the inspection we sent out and received four out of 32 surveys from people who used the service; none were received from 32 relatives/friends; 12 out of 96 surveys from staff and four out of 26 surveys we had sent to community professionals.

During the inspection we visited the service’s office and three of the homes where people lived. We spoke with seven people and one relative. We also spoke with the manager; a representative of the provider, called the Nominated Individual [NI]; two team managers; one training manager; two senior members of care staff and two members of care staff.

We looked at seven people’s care records, medicines administration records and records in relation to the management of staff and management of the service, including audits and minutes of meetings.

Due to their complex communication needs some people were unable to verbally tell us their views about their experience of being looked after. Therefore, we observed care to assist us in our understanding of the quality of care people received.

Updated 29 June 2016

Augusta Care Limited is registered to provide personal care to people living at home. People receiving the care have a range of needs, which includes learning and physical disabilities.

At the time of this inspection care was provided to 46 people who live with a learning disability and who may also have mental and physical health needs.

This comprehensive inspection took place on 14 June 2016 and was announced.

The provider is required to have a registered manager as one of their conditions of registration. A registered manager was not in post at the time of the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission [CQC] to manage the agency. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. There was a manager operating the service and they had applied to be registered and was waiting for the CQC to consider their completed application.

People were kept safe and staff were knowledgeable about reporting any incident of harm. People were looked after by enough staff to support them with their individual needs. Pre-employment checks were completed on staff before they were assessed to be suitable to look after people who used the service. People were supported to take their medicines as prescribed.

People were supported to eat and drink sufficient amounts of food and drink. They were also supported to access health care services and their individual health and nutritional needs were met.

The CQC is required by law to monitor the Mental Capacity Act 2005 [MCA 2005] and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards [DoLS] and to report on what we find. The provider was aware of what they were required to do should any person lack mental capacity. People’s mental capacity was assessed and care was provided in their best interests. Staff were trained and knowledgeable about the application of the MCA. Arrangements were in place for external agencies to make DoLS applications to the Court of Protection [CoP], if these were required. The outcome of these decisions was pending.

People were looked after by staff who were trained and supported to do their job.

People were treated by kind staff who they liked. They and their relatives were given opportunities to be involved in the review of people’s individual care plans.

People were supported to increase their integration into the community; they were helped to take part in recreational and work-related activities that were important to them. Care was provided based on people’s individual needs. There was a process in place so that people’s concerns and complaints were listened to and these were acted upon.

The registered manager was supported by a team of management staff and care staff. Staff were supported and managed to look after people in a safe way. Staff, people and their relatives were able to make suggestions and actions were taken as a result. Quality monitoring procedures were in place and action was taken where improvements were identified.