Background to this inspection
Updated
8 January 2019
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
This comprehensive inspection took place on 22 November 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because we wanted to be sure that the registered manager and staff would be available to speak with.
Prior to the inspection an Expert by Experience carried out telephone calls to people and relatives and asked them for their views of the quality of the support provided. An Expert by Experience is someone who has cared for someone who has used this type of service. They spoke with 10 people who used the service and four relatives. We also sent questionnaires to people, relatives, staff and community professionals and asked them for their views. We received three responses from people who use the service, three from staff and three from community professionals. The feedback from these telephone interviews and questionnaires was largely positive. This feedback helped to inform this inspection.
Before the inspection we asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what it does well and improvements they plan to make. We reviewed information we held about the service, including notifications of incidents that had occurred in the service, which the provider is required to send us by law. We contacted commissioners, responsible for funding some of the people using the service, to gain their views about the care provided.
During the inspection, we spoke with two support staff, a support coordinator and the registered manager.
We looked at records relating to four people who used the service, as well as staff recruitment records. We looked at other information related to the running of and the quality of the service. This included quality assurance audits, training information for support staff, staff duty rotas, meeting minutes and arrangements for managing complaints.
Updated
8 January 2019
This announced inspection was carried out on 22 November 2018. Start Service – Mansfield & Ashfield Locality provides a short term reablement service. Reablement services support people in their own homes. This service is usually delivered following people’s discharge from hospital. People normally do not use this service for longer than a six week period. On the day of the inspection there were 49 people using the service who received personal care. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for reablement; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.
The service had a registered manager who was present during the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
This is the service’s second inspection under its current registration. In our previous inspection the service received a rating of ‘Good’ overall. After this inspection, the service has retained this rating.
People were protected from avoidable harm and neglect. The risks to people’s safety were assessed and mitigated. There were sufficient staff in place to support people with their reablement. People’s medicines were managed safely. Staff understood how to reduce the risks of the spread of infection. Processes were in place that enabled accidents and incidents to be investigated and preventative measures put in place to reduce the risk of recurrence.
People received support in line with current legislation and best practice guidelines. Staff were trained and received supervision of their practice. People were supported to lead healthy lives. Effective relationships with external health and social care organisations were in place to ensure people’s health was regularly monitored. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.
People and relatives found the staff to be kind and caring. People felt they were treated with respect and dignity. People’s diverse needs were discussed with them. Advocates were made available if people needed further support. People were involved with decisions about their support needs. People’s privacy was respected.
People were provided with support in accordance with their personal preferences. Staff understood how to support people. People’s support records were reviewed to ensure people’s changing needs could be met. No formal complaints had been received since our last inspection, but processes were in place that enabled these to be responded to appropriately. End of life care was not provided.
People, relatives and staff would recommend the service to others. People’s views on how to continually develop and improve the service were asked for and acted on. Staff felt valued. Robust and effective quality assurance processes were in place. The registered manager was knowledgeable about their role and carried out their duties effectively.