HFH Healthcare Limited

Updated 15 July 2021

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 consisted of two inspectors, a specialist advisor nurse and two Experts by Experience. 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 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 24 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because we needed to be sure the registered manager would be available for us to speak with during our inspection. We visited the office location on 14 and 19 May 2021.

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. 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 reviewed all the key information providers are required to send us about their service, including statutory notifications. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with three nurse care leads, the registered manager, chief executive officer, a commercial director and an administration officer.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 15 people’s care records and medication records. We looked at five 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 training data and quality assurance records.

In addition, we spoke with five people using the service, 15 family members, three nurse case managers and six care assistants. We spoke with two professionals who work closely with the service.

Updated 15 July 2021

HFH Healthcare Limited is a domiciliary care agency. At the time of our inspection they were providing personal care and treatment to 114 adults and children who lived in their own home. Most people using the service had a range of complex health care needs and some received 24-hour care from live-in staff.

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

At this inspection we have continued to rate the service ‘good’ overall. The majority of people using the service and their relatives were satisfied with the quality of care and support provided. They felt the quality of care had improved since the new registered manager took over the management of the agency. The provider had made progress since the previous inspection in ensuring people received continuity of care and support from staff who understood their complex health care needs.

Staff knew how to manage risks people might face and protect them from avoidable harm. The majority of the staff felt well supported and valued. New staff underwent pre-employment checks which ensured their suitability and fitness for the role. There was ongoing recruitment of care assistants to ensure staffing levels were sufficient to meet the needs of people receiving care. People were supported to manage and receive their medicines safely. People received support from staff who assessed and responded to risks regarding infection prevention and control, including those associated with Covid-19 pandemic.

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 had access to training to maintain people's safety and meet their specific needs.

People, their relatives, health and social care professionals and staff commended the way the agency was now being run. The provider and registered manager had systems in place which they used to regularly monitor and assess the quality and safety of care provided to people. People, their relatives and staff were given opportunities to provide feedback about the service. They said the registered manager was approachable and welcomed feedback to enable them to learn and improve the care people received. People felt able to raise their concerns and were confident any issues raised would be addressed. The provider worked in close partnership with other health and social care professionals and agencies to plan and deliver safe care and treatment to people using the service.

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

Rating at last inspection and update.

The last rating for this service was good (published 22 May 2019). This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions; Is the service safe, effective and well-led?

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to the ability of staff to perform in their roles and the way the service was managed. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only. We found evidence during this inspection that the provider had taken action to mitigate risks to people receiving unsafe care. Please see the safe, effective and well-led sections of this full report.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for the key questions of Caring and Responsive were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection strategy. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.