8 November 2022
During a routine inspection
Serenity Always Health Care is a domiciliary care service that provides personal care to people living in their own homes. 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. At the time of our inspection the service was providing personal care support to 9 people.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People were not always supported on time by staff as staff did not have enough traveling time between people's care calls. People were supported by trained staff however staff's understanding of safeguarding and the MCA could be improved. Quality assurance tools had not identified concerns we found around staff rotas and training.
People felt safe and were supported by safely recruited staff. People had care plans and risk assessments in place which explored their needs and preferences. Staff knew people well and were meeting their needs. People were supported to receive their medicines as prescribed. People were supported in line with infection control guidance.
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. People were supported to eat and drink in line with their needs and preferences. People had end of life care plans in place.
People were supported to access health and social care professionals where they required these. People were supported by staff they described as 'caring' and 'kind'. People were supported to maintain their privacy and dignity. People were supported to maximise their independence.
People and their relatives knew how to complain. The provider responded promptly to concerns raised about the service. The provider had quality assurance tools in place in relation to medicines and care plans which identified where improvements were required and took action to make improvements.
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 requires improvement (published 18 March 2021). At this inspection we found improvements had been made but the rating remained requires improvement. The service has been rated as less than good on four consecutive inspections.
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about the management and oversight of the service. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. Please see the well led section of this full report.
Recommendations
We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.
At this inspection we made recommendations around staff training in relation to safeguarding.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.