All inspections: Mears Homecare Limited Staffordshire

On the day of our inspection Staffordshire Care UK provided care and support for 358 people. We spoke with one person who used the service and the relatives of three other people. After the inspection 61 questionnaires were sent out to people who used the service and their relatives. A total of 11 questionnaires were returned. The results helped us to understand people's outcomes and experiences.

A person who used the service told us, 'They are very good, I couldn't do without them. They're friendly and get on with the job. I'd give them 10 out of 10'. A relative told us, 'They (the staff) are excellent, helpful and fit in with us. We are perfectly happy with the service. The staff are friendly people who we trust'.

People told us they were asked for their consent and staff acted in accordance with their wishes. We saw that people had individualised plans of care and the care described in them reflected the care that staff told us they gave. We saw that people were protected from the risk of abuse because the provider had taken reasonable steps to prevent abuse from happening.

We saw that there were effective recruitment procedures in place. It is a legal requirement that the service has a registered manager in place. On the day of our inspection there was no registered manager but the acting manager was in the process of applying to become the registered manager. The provider had systems in place for monitoring and improving the quality of service provided.

On the day of our follow up inspection we looked at seven care plans, spoke with six staff members, three people who used the service and three relatives. One person we spoke with told us, 'I can't fault the service in anyway. They meet all my needs in the half hour that they visit my home'. Another person told us, 'The carers are like friends. They are always polite and respectful'.

At our last inspection we found that people's views and experiences were not taken into account when their care was delivered. This meant that people were not involved in the decisions about their care. We also found that care was not always planned and delivered in a way that ensured people's safety and welfare. At this inspection we found that new care plans had been introduced which involved people in the decisions about their care and kept them safe. The people that we spoke with that had a new care plan in place told us they had been involved in making decisions about their care and treatment. We observed that not all the people who used the service had a new care plan in place. The provider told us that there was an ongoing programme to introduce them to all.

At our last inspection we saw that the systems in place for monitoring the quality of the service people received were not effective. At this inspection we saw evidence that there had been an improvement in the quality monitoring systems. This meant that action plans were developed to improve the service people received.

This inspection was completed due to concerns we had received about the care provided to people using the service. The inspection was unannounced so the provider did not know we were visiting.

As part of this inspection we spoke with 12 people that used the service and their relatives to obtain their views about the care they received. We also spoke with 10 care workers to ask them about their knowledge and care practices.

The provider told us that the service had recently changed with several branches working together as one location. The service had three teams of staff covering different areas of Staffordshire and Stoke. The service was providing care to over 700 people.

Everyone we spoke with was happy with the care they received from their regular care workers. Comments included, "Care good when regular carers", "Very good" and "Satisfied with the service". People were not as happy when they did not have regular care workers. Some people said they did not know when care workers were coming and at times calls were late. There had been some occasions when people had not been provided with a visit. This meant that people have not received the care and support they needed.

The service was not completing an assessment of people's needs and therefore did not have their full information to promote their welfare and wellbeing. Plans of care gave limited information about people's care and did not include information about how they wanted their care providing. Plans of care were not always updated when people's needs changed. Plans to reduce risks to people were not always accurate and did not provide sufficient information. This meant that people may not receive safe care.

Staff were trained to identify incidents of abuse and of poor practice. Every person we spoke with said they felt safe.

The provider had systems in place to review and monitor peoples' service but these were inconsistently applied.

Archived: Mears Homecare Limited Staffordshire

All Inspections

10 December 2013

During a routine inspection

23 January 2013

During an inspection looking at part of the service

1 July 2012

During an inspection in response to concerns