Archived: Allied Healthcare Worcester

Updated 18 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 25 May 2016 and was announced. We made telephone calls to people who used the service and relatives on 26 May 2016. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the location provides a domiciliary care service; we needed to be sure that someone would be in. The inspection team consisted of one inspector.

As part of the inspection we reviewed information we held about the service including statutory notifications that had been submitted. Statutory notifications include information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law.

We reviewed provider information return (PIR) that the provider submitted to us. We also reviewed the questionnaire feedback that the CQC had sent to people who used the service prior to our inspection. We spoke also spoke with the local authority about information that may be relevant prior to our inspection of the service.

We spoke with four people who used the service and two relative and the external healthcare professional who was the clinical lead nurse for the Hospital at Home service. We also spoke with three care staff, the domiciliary care co-ordinator, the hospital co-ordinator, the field care supervisor, the training consultant and registered manager. We looked at three people’s care records. We also looked at staff schedules, complaints and compliments, satisfaction survey, three staff recruitment records.

Updated 18 June 2016

This inspection took place on 25 May 2016 and was announced. We gave the registered manager 48 hours’ notice of our intention to undertake an inspection. This was because Allied Healthcare provides personal care for people who live in their own homes and we needed to be sure that someone would be available at the office.

At the time of our inspection 31 people who received personal care in their own homes. The service also provided a ‘Hospital at Home’ service, which is a National Health Service (NHS) service which provides their own nurses. Allied Healthcare provides the care workers. The care workers provide continual support to people in their own homes under the direction of the nursing team.

There was a registered manager in place at the time of our inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

Staff we spoke with knew how to protect people from harm. We found staff recognised the signs of abuse and knew how to report this. Staff made sure risk assessments were in place and took actions to minimise risks without taking away people’s right to make decisions.

People told us there were enough staff to help them when they needed them. Staff told us there were enough staff to provide safe care and support to people. Advanced planning meant that staffing levels were reviewed and reflected the needs of people who used the service. People’s medicines were checked and managed in a safe way.

People received care and support which met their needs and preferences. Care and support was provided to people with their consent and agreement. Staff understood and recognised the importance of this. We found people were supported to eat a healthy balanced diet and were supported with enough fluids to keep them healthy. We found staff supported people with access to healthcare professionals, such as their doctor or hospital appointments.

We saw people were involved in planning their care. People’s views and decisions they had made about their care were listened and acted upon. People told us that staff treated them kindly, with dignity and their privacy was respected.

We found people knew how to make a complaint and felt comfortable to do this should they feel they needed to. Where the provider had received complaints, these had been responded to. Learning had been taken from complaints received and actions were put into place to address these.

Staff felt supported by the registered manager to carry out their roles and responsibilities effectively.

We found the checks the registered manager completed focused upon the experiences of people. Where areas for improvement were identified, systems were in place to ensure lessons were learnt and used to improve staff practice.