Essex Dementia Care

Updated 19 October 2019

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection team was made up of one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 18 September 2019 and ended on 23 September 2019 when we visited the office location.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with the registered manager, the care manager and 3 members of care staff. We contacted four people’s relatives by phone to ask for their experience of the care provided. We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.

Updated 19 October 2019

About the service

Essex Dementia Care is a domiciliary care service providing personal care and support for people living with dementia who live in their own homes. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of our inspection the service were providing personal care to 30 people.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Comments from people and relatives about their experience of using the service were positive. This was summed up by one person's relative who reported, "This is the most wonderful service with friendly helpful staff both in the office and on the front line. They have been a lifeline for both my [family member] and me."

People were supported by regular staff who knew how to keep them safe from the risk of harm. Staff had been safely recruited and there were sufficient staff to meet people's needs. People told us they did not experience missed or late visits.

Staff received training and ongoing support to ensure they had the knowledge and skills to be competent in their job role. If it was part of an assessed need, staff helped people have enough to eat and drink.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Staff were kind and caring and listened to people, working with them in partnership to meet their individual needs and wishes. The service aimed to support people to live their lives to the full and be as independent as they could be. People were assisted to access their local communities and engage in a wide range of activities that were important to them.

People received individualised care and support in line with their needs and wishes. People and their relatives were involved in regular reviews and given opportunities to provide feedback on the service. There were systems and processes to manage complaints.

We made a recommendation about exploring and recording people's end of life preferences.

The service benefitted from good leadership. There was a positive culture with a focus on providing person-centred support that empowered people. Staff enjoyed working at the service and felt well supported by the management team. Quality assurance systems and processes were in place to monitor and improve safety and quality.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection the last rating for this service was Good (published September 2016).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Essex Dementia Care on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.