Background to this inspection
Updated
11 March 2022
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.
We received information of concern about infection prevention and control measures at this service. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control measures the provider has in place.
This inspection took place on 28 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours' notice of the inspection.
Inspection team
One inspector carried out this inspection. An Expert by Experience supported this inspection making telephone calls to people and their relatives. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
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
This inspection was announced. 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.
What we did before 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. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.
During the inspection
We spoke with one person who used the service and six relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with four members of staff including the registered manager, and three care workers.
We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four 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. We looked at policies and procedures and quality assurance records.
Updated
11 March 2022
About the service
Bells Homecare is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection there were 11 people receiving a regulated activity. 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 in place to monitor the quality of the service were not robust. We have made a recommendation regarding this.
Measures in place to reduce the risk of spread of infection were not always in line with government guidelines. We have made a recommendation about this.
Staff were not always recruited safely and appropriate checks on staff were not always completed. We have made a recommendation about this.
People were consistently positive about the support they received from Bells Home Care and the caring nature of staff. Staff knew people well and knew how to mitigate any risks to people. Some improvements were required to people’s records.
People received their medicines as prescribed. Staff had received training and competencies to ensure they had the knowledge and skills to safely administer medicines.
People felt safe receiving support from Bells Home Care. Staff had knowledge of safeguarding procedures.
People and staff shared positive feedback regarding the management. They felt there was effective communication and that the registered manager was approachable.
The provider worked in partnership with health professionals and the local authority. They had offered support to cover care calls for other providers during the height of the pandemic.
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 09 January 2019)
Why we inspected
We undertook a targeted inspection to follow up on specific concerns which we had received about the service. The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about measures in place to reduce the risk of spread of inspection. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.
We inspected and found there was a concern with infection control measures, so we widened the scope of the inspection to become a focused inspection which included the key questions of safe and well-led.
No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.
The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Bells Home Care on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.