We carried out a review of the data available to us about Easy Living Solutions on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Easy Living Solutions, you can give feedback on this service.
About the service
Easy Living Solutions is a domiciliary care service that provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes. The service supported 22 people at the time of the inspection.
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.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Systems used by the registered manager to monitor the service had not been fully embedded and recorded. We found no impact on the care being delivered as the registered manager had a good insight into the service and staff were knowledgeable about people’s needs.
The registered manager was aware that further improvements were needed in the details of some people’s care needs, risk assessments, medicines and the documentation of some areas of the management of staff. The registered manager planned to analyse monitoring reports to enable them to identify trends and concerns and to drive improvement. We have made a recommendation about the services governance processes.
Staff followed infection control guidance and had access to personal protective equipment. Staff had completed safeguarding adults training and knew how to keep people safe and report concerns.
People told us staff were kind and caring and that they felt safe due to the support they received from staff.
People and their relatives felt confident in the staff's ability and knowledge to support them. Staff had a good understanding of the needs and risks of people they supported and had access to ongoing training and supervision. There were enough staff to provide people with the care and support they needed.
People and their relatives told us that they were involved in their initial assessment and in making decisions about their care. They told us staff were consistently kind and very caring.
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.
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 24 October 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned pilot virtual inspection. The report was created as part of a pilot which looked at new and innovative ways of fulfilling CQC’s regulatory obligations and responding to risk in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. This was conducted with the consent of the provider. Unless the report says otherwise, we obtained the information in it without visiting the Provider.
The pilot inspection considered the key questions of safe and well-led and provide a rating for those key questions. Only parts of the effective, caring and responsive key questions were considered, and therefore the ratings for these key questions are those awarded at the last inspection.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.
ELS was re-registered with CQC in June 2016 when the provider changed to a limited company. This is the first inspection carried out under this registration.
A registered manager was in post; they were registered to manage ELS in June 2016. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.
People felt safe with the service provided and with the staff who supported them. Staff understood how to protect people from harm and abuse. Risks to people's safety were identified and appropriate steps were taken to reduce these risks. Environmental risks were assessed and responded to appropriately. There were sufficient staff on duty and recruitment procedures were thorough. People received their medicines as prescribed.
People were supported by knowledgeable staff who received ongoing training and support to maintain or improve their skills and competency. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People were supported to eat and drink sufficient amounts and the service worked with external health and social care professionals to meet people’s changing needs.
People received support from caring staff who understood their needs and knew what was important to them. People’s privacy was respected and they were treated with dignity, kindness and compassion. Relatives of people for whom ‘end of life’ care had been provided, were highly complementary of the care their relative had received.
People received personalised and responsive care which enabled them to live at home for as long as possible. People could raise concerns about the service and have their complaints listened to.
Everyone we spoke with commented positively on the leadership of the service and told us they were able to speak with the registered manager or provider when they needed to. There were systems in place to seek the views of people, their relatives, staff and visiting care professionals. Additional systems ensured key messages were communicated and the quality of the service was monitored. Improvements needed to some people’s support plans were in progress.