Archived: Bushey Flexicare

There was a manager in post who had submitted an application to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). A registered manager is a person who has registered with the 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The registered manager was supported by service and assistant service managers responsible for the day-to-day operation of each location where people received care and support.

People told us that staff helped them stay safe, both at home and when out and about in the community. Staff received training for how to safeguard people from abuse and were knowledgeable about the potential risks of abuse and how to report their concerns. Robust recruitment practices were followed and there were sufficient numbers of suitable staff available at all times to meet people’s needs. People where necessary and appropriate were supported to take their medicines safely and at the right time by trained staff. Potential risks to people’s health and well-being were identified, reviewed and managed effectively.

People who received support, relatives and health care professionals were positive about the skills, experience and abilities of staff who received training and refresher updates relevant to their roles. Staff supported people to maintain good health and access health and social care services when necessary.

Staff obtained people’s agreement to the support provided and always obtained their consent before helping them with personal care. People told us that staff supported them in a kind and caring way that promoted their dignity. We found that staff had developed positive relationships with the people they supported and where clearly very knowledgeable about their needs and personal circumstances.

People who received support were involved in the planning and regular reviews of the care provided and this was accurately reflected in their individual plans of care. The confidentiality of information held about people’s medical and personal histories was securely maintained.

People received personalised care and support that met their needs and took account of their preferences. Staff were knowledgeable about people’s background histories, preferences and routines. People were supported to pursue social interests relevant to their needs. They told us that the registered manager and staff listened to them and responded positively to any concerns they had. People were encouraged to raise any concerns they had and knew how to make a complaint if the need arose.

People, their relatives, staff and professional stakeholders were all complimentary about the management team and how the service operated. The management team monitored the quality of services and potential risks in order to drive continuous improvement.

Bushey flexi care is registered to provide personal care and support for older adults or people with age related frailty. The service provides support to people who live independently in their own homes. The service was supporting 20 people who lived within the complex which consisted of two buildings Collins Court and Storey Court located within Barley Close which also formed part of the complex. There were 89 homes in total within the complex.

There was a registered manager who was no longer working at the service and had applied to deregister. The acting manager was in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). A registered manager is a person who has registered with the 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People felt safe, living in their own homes. Some of the staff had received training in how to safeguard people from the risk of abuse and knew how to report concerns. There was a robust recruitment process in place; however this was not always followed to help ensure that potential staff were suitable to work with people in their own homes.

People and relatives were positive about the skills, experience and abilities of support staff who worked in people’s homes. Staff received some training and refresher updates relevant to their roles and responsibilities and had periodic supervision with their line manager.

People were supported to maintain their health and had access to health and social care professionals when necessary. People were supported with shopping, food rotation, (checking that food was used in date order) meal planning and meal preparation.

Staff discussed people’s wishes and preferred routines and obtained their consent before providing personal care and support. People were cared for in a kind and compassionate way. However people who could not always make day to day decisions had not had mental capacity assessments. (MCA)

Staff had developed positive and caring relationships with the people they supported and knew them well. However, people were not always involved in the planning, delivery or reviews of their care. People’s private and confidential information was stored securely maintained at the service and in the office.

Care was provided in a way that promoted people’s dignity and respected their privacy. People received care and support that met their needs and took account of their preferences. Staff were knowledgeable about people’s preferences, routines and personal circumstances. However, care records did not contain sufficient detail to demonstrate that ‘personalised’ care and support was provided. The manager took immediate responsive action to remedy this in response to our feedback.

People were encouraged and supported to pursue social interests and take part in activities that were of interest to them, both at the service and in the wider community. They felt that staff listened to them and responded to any concerns they had in a positive way. Complaints were recorded and investigated.

Relatives and staff were positive and complimentary about the manager and how the service was operated.

However, the quality monitoring at the service was inadequate and did not identify some of the issues and concerns what we found during our inspection. The provider and manger responded immediately and an action plan was put in place to make the required improvements. The provider has told us how they plan to monitor the quality of service provided, reduce potential risks and drive improvements going forward.