Bluebird Care Harrow and Brent

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

The rating has improved from requires improvement to good during this assessment. Risks to people's safety and wellbeing had been assessed. Comprehensive risk assessments were in place to help protect people. Systems were in place to help investigate accidents, incidents, complaints, and safeguarding and ensure these were learnt from. Effective systems were in place to safely recruit staff. Staff were trained and supported appropriately. People’s medicines were managed safely. An electronic system was in place to monitor staff timekeeping and punctuality. Systems were in place to help prevent and control infections. Staff and management communicated and worked with other agencies to help keep people safe.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People we spoke with told us they felt able to speak to staff and the registered manager openly. A person told us, “I know who to speak to in the office if I have any issues, but I have no complaints.” Relatives told us they knew how to make a complaint and were confident they would be listened to. A relative said, “We are aware of the complaints procedure and the office are easy to contact and will deal with any issues promptly.” People and relatives were encouraged to provide feedback. Lessons learnt were discussed in staff meetings and supervision sessions. This provided staff with an opportunity to openly share information, discuss and learn from one another. Management investigated adverse events to reduce the likelihood of these reoccurring and improve the quality of care and safety. Policies and procedures were in place for investigating and responding to accidents, incidents, complaints, and safeguarding alerts. These showed that there had been a thorough investigation and learning from these which included an opportunity for staff to reflect on their own practice and make improvements.

People told us they were involved in their care. A person said, “I have a comprehensive care plan that I was involved with and it clearly states my health needs, and care needs.” This was confirmed by relatives who told us they were informed and involved in people’s care and support planning where appropriate. A relative told us, “A comprehensive care plan was put into place, and we were involved with decisions regarding [my relative’s] needs.” We did not receive feedback from staff regarding this aspect of the service. A care professional we spoke with was complimentary about how the agency had worked with other care professionals. They told us, “Bluebird care and in particular [the registered manager] were fantastic during this period despite other agencies being involved in [person’s] care. It was in fact the work of [the registered manager] and their team that facilitated the swift and safe transfer of this client.” There was a referral and admission process in place so that people received joined up care.

People we spoke with told us they felt safe in the presence of care staff and were comfortable with them in their home. A person told us, “I feel safe and confident with the carers. I live alone and they are very supportive.” Another person said, “I feel safe with them and happy, they bend over backwards to help me in every way that I need.” Relatives we spoke with confirmed they were confident family members were safe when being supported by care staff. Staff told us they felt confident reporting concerns and wouldn’t hesitate to do so. Care staff described the action they would take if they witnessed any abusive or neglectful practice. Care staff were confident management would take appropriate action when required. The registered manager was aware of their responsibilities on how to help protect people from abuse and the actions they would take where there was an allegation of abuse. Safeguarding procedures were in place. These provided guidance about the action to take if staff had concerns about the welfare of people. Training records showed staff had completed safeguarding training.

Risks to people’s safety and wellbeing were planned for. People told us they felt staff provided safe care which met their needs. A person said, “The manager did a very detailed risk assessment during the care planning and ensured the carers were trained by the physiotherapist.” Staff told us they had completed training to understand how to safely care for people and mitigate risks. For example, how to support people to move, and how to use equipment. Staff told us they wouldn’t hesitate to raise concerns with management and had confidence that appropriate action would be taken. Management had completed risk assessments and risk management plans to show how people should be cared for and supported. These included personalised guidance about managing risks and control measures. Risk assessments and plans were regularly reviewed and updated. Staff completed training in areas of potential risk such as first aid, moving and handling and health and safety.

The CQC does not assess people’s home environments for this type of service. However, we were able to see that the service had carried out an assessment of people’s home environment to help identify risks. The registered manager explained that during the assessment of people’ needs, they looked out for hazards and if these were identified, measures were put in place to reduce the risks of harm to people. Processes were in place to help identify risks within the environment and monitor these.

People and relatives told us staff arrived on time and completed all their duties well. A person told us, “All the carers are extremely well trained in operating the equipment and manual handling and I am very confident in their ability.” Another person told us, “All I can say is I have great continuity of care, great companionship and they are wonderful a 12 out of 10, as they are so very good “ Care and support was provided by a stable and regular workforce that people and relatives were familiar with. They spoke positively about this. Staff told us they were supported by management. They told us there were enough care staff to safely meet people’s needs and no concerns were raised about this. Staff spoke positively about communication within the service and said they were kept informed of changes and developments. Policies and procedures were in place to help recruit staff safely. Thorough checks on the suitability of potential staff were completed. This included obtaining references and checks with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The DBS helps employers make safer recruitment decisions and help prevent unsuitable people from working in care services. Records showed that staff had received training in areas relevant to their roles. Staff received supervision sessions which provided an opportunity for them to discuss their performance and professional development. Newly recruited staff completed an induction, which included shadowing colleagues as well as completing a range of training and competency assessments. The registered manager worked closely with staff. An electronic homecare monitoring system was in place. This monitored care worker’s timekeeping and punctuality in real time.

People and relatives told us care staff followed infection control processes, including washing their hands, keeping people’s home’s clean and wearing personal protective equipment (PPE). Staff had completed training about infection prevention and control. Staff said they had enough PPE. Infection prevention and control policies were in place. Staff were given the information and guidance they needed.

People and relatives told us that medicines were administered appropriately. Staff had their competency to administer people’s medicines safely assessed to check they had the appropriate skills and knowledge to do so. There were appropriate procedures for managing medicines. People’s medicines support needs were clearly documented in their care plan. Care staff recorded medicines administration electronically so that the office could monitor this in real time. We looked at a sample of Medicines Administration Records (MARs) and found that these were completed with no unexplained gaps. Some people were prescribed PRN (as required) medicines. There were appropriate protocols for staff on when and how to administer PRN medicines. PRN medicines were administered as prescribed.