Background to this inspection
Updated
23 February 2017
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 12 and 13 January 2017 and was announced. We gave the provider 48 hours’ notice of the inspection because it is a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure that someone would be in the office.
The inspection team consisted of one 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 service.
As part of the inspection we looked at the information we held about the service. This included statutory notifications, which are notifications the provider must send us to inform us of certain events that affect the wellbeing of people who use the service. The provider had sent us a Provider Information Return (PIR) before the inspection. A PIR is a form that asks the provider to give key information about the agency, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. This helped us to plan the inspection.
As part of the inspection we spoke with six people who used the service and five relatives. We spoke with the registered manager, the care delivery manager, the regional training coordinator, the clinical lead and nine support staff, including senior staff. We also spoke with an external training assessor and two social care professionals.
We looked at three people’s care records and support plans. We looked at three staff files. We also looked at a range of quality audits and action plans. These showed us how the provider monitored the quality of the service provided.
Updated
23 February 2017
Allied Healthcare Telford is registered to provide personal care to people of all ages living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection the agency was supporting 96 people with a range of care and support needs.
The inspection of this service took place on 12 and 13 January 2017 and was announced.
There was a registered manager in post and they were present at the time of the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, registered managers 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.
People received a service that was safe and staff were confident they could protect the people they supported from harm. Risks in relation to providing safe support were assessed, documented and well managed.
There were sufficient staff to meet people’s assessed needs at times that had been agreed. Staff could offer flexible and responsive support to meet people’s changing needs in order to ensure their on-going safety and wellbeing. There were effective systems in place to ensure that people received the support they required. Staff were recruited through safe recruitment practices meaning that only people suitable to work in the role were appointed.
People who required support to take their medicines were protected by safe systems for administering, storing and recording medicines. People were supported by staff who had received training and were competency checked to ensure the safe administration of medicines.
People were supported by staff who had the knowledge and skills to provide effective support. Staff received good training opportunities and training was developed to ensure staff were skilled to meet people’s individual health and personal care needs.
Staff had a good understanding of their roles and responsibilities and worked well as a team to ensure people’s needs were met. Effective communication meant that information was shared appropriately to ensure people’s needs were known. People were supported in ways that they preferred because staff were aware of people’s individual needs and preferences.
People’s rights were protected as the provider was appropriately applying the principles of the under the Mental Capacity Act. People were supported by staff to make choices in relation to the care and support they received.
Staff worked with healthcare professionals to promote and maintain people’s good health. Staff monitored people’s wellbeing and offered flexible support to enable people to enjoy a varied and nutritious diet that met their individual dietary needs.
People were supported by staff who were caring, kind and compassionate. People got to know the staff who supported them and this consistency meant they received good care and support. People were supported to remain as independent as they were able whist receiving support and care. People told us that staff treated them with dignity and respect. Staff respected people as individuals and respected their chosen lifestyles.
People received a responsive service. They received the care and support they required. They told us that any changes were communicated and staff were flexible if people wished to reschedule their calls. Overall care plans reflected peoples support needs and were updated as needs changed.
People told us they were satisfied with the service that they received and felt consulted with in how their care and support was delivered. People, and their relatives had opportunities to give feedback on the service and feedback received was positive. The provider had a system to appropriately manage complaints. People were confident that, should they need to make a complaint, they would be listened to and their concerns would be acted upon. There were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service provided. The registered manager learned from incidents, accidents and complaints and made changes to improve the service if possible as a result.