The Care Quality Commission
  • Services in your home
  • Homecare service

Archived: Comfort Call Kirklees

Prospect House, Prospect Business Centre, Prospect Street, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, HD1 2NU (01484) 540233

Provided and run by:
Comfort Call Limited

All Inspections

24, 25 February and 3 March 2014

During an inspection looking at part of the service

When we visited the service in June 2013 people told us care was often rushed or not done because there were not enough care workers available. People also told us about the lack of continuity of care and said they would not recommend this organisation. We found care and treatment was not planned in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. We also found there were not always enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs.

We said that improvements were needed. We returned on this visit to check whether improvements had been made.

During our inspection we spoke with nine people who used the service or their relatives, the registered manager, two directors, two care co-ordinators and six care workers.

We found care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare.

We also found there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs.

19 June 2013

During a routine inspection

We spoke with nine people who used the service, two relatives and one friend of a person who used the service. Although people told us they felt safe when receiving personal care and they thought the care was satisfactory, they did not have much confidence in the organisation. Over half of the people who used the service made comments about the lack of continuity of care and said they would not recommend this organisation. One person told us, "There's a lot of new staff and you sometimes have to tell them what to do." Another person told us, "I don't like new ones, I have to tell them what to do."

People we spoke with also commented that care was often rushed or not done because there were not enough care workers available. One person told us, "When there's a problem there is no back up; there isn't enough staff." Another person told us the service was unreliable. Two people provided us with examples of the impact on their health and wellbeing when care staff had failed to turn up at the allocated time. One person told us how they had been in bed for 14 hours due to care staff attending too early one evening to assist them to bed.

We looked at five sets of care records and were happy with the way in which people's health and wellbeing needs were assessed. We also spoke with four staff about the training they had received and they told us they felt they had received sufficient training.