6 December 2016
During a routine inspection
Heath Lodge Care Services is based in Bognor Regis. They are registered to provide personal care. The service provides care and support for adults living in their own homes and includes support for people with physical disabilities, sensory impairment and dementia type conditions. At the time of the inspection, 75 people received personal care from the service.
A registered manager was in post. 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.
On the whole, risks to people's wellbeing and safety had been effectively mitigated. We found individual risks had been assessed and recorded in people’s care plans. Examples of risk assessments relating to personal care included moving and handling, nutrition and hydration, falls and continence information. However, for one person, we found that risks to staff and the person’s own safety as a result of their behaviour were not always assessed and planned for. The risks associated with these behaviours had not been planned and there was lack of guidance for staff to follow. This was an area requiring improvement.
People told us they felt safe receiving the care and support provided by the service. Staff understood and could recognise the signs of potential abuse and knew what to do if they needed to raise a safeguarding concern. Training schedules confirmed staff had received training in safeguarding adults at risk.
Robust recruitment and selection procedures were in place and appropriate checks had been made before staff began work at the service. There were sufficient levels of staff to protect people's health, safety and welfare consistently and reliably.
People said staff were caring and kind and their individual needs were met. Staff knew people well and demonstrated they had a good understanding of people’s needs and choices.
We looked at care records and found good standards of person centred care planning. Care plans represented people's needs, preferences and life stories to enable staff to fully understand people's needs and wishes. The good level of person centred care meant that people could lead independent lifestyles, maintain relationships and be fully involved in the local community.
Staff felt supported by management, they said they were well trained and understood what was expected of them. Staff were encouraged to provide feedback and report concerns to improve the service.
There was a complaints policy and information regarding the complaints procedure was available. Complaints were listened to, investigated in a timely manner, and used to improve the service.
Regular audits were in place to measure and monitor the quality of care and service provided. People and staff surveys were positive about Heath Lodge Care Services.