Background to this inspection
Updated
14 January 2020
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 was undertaken by two inspectors and two assistant inspectors.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. Not everyone using the service received the regulated activity 'personal care'. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) only inspects the service being received by people provided with 'personal care'; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that 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
This inspection was unannounced.
What we did before the 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 used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with eight people who used the service and eight relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 14 members of staff including the registered manager, team managers, rota programmers and reablement support workers.
We reviewed a range of records. This included 13 people’s care records and medication records. We looked at ten 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.
Updated
14 January 2020
About the service
Homecare Assessment and Reablement Team (HART) Leicestershire provides assessment, equipment and support to people in their own homes. The service is usually provided for up to six weeks and aims to help people to learn to live as independently as they can and to assess people's needs for longer term care. At the time of our inspection, the service was supporting approximately 203 people.
The service also provides a Crisis Support Team, who provide personal care for up to 72 hours for people in their own homes in crisis situations. For example, when released from hospital, they can support people on a short-term basis whilst they find a longer-term care provider. At the time of inspection there were 16 people receiving personal care.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
There was a registered manager at the service, they had been registered since February 2016.
The registered manager, managers and reablement support workers (care staff) were all dedicated to the reablement of people in their own homes.
People set their own goals and staff supported them to achieve these by promoting people’s independence. People received care from a multi-disciplinary team who assessed their needs in a holistic way; enabling people to access services such as occupational therapy, pharmacy, physiotherapy, assistive technology and personal care.
People were protected from the risks of abuse or unsafe care by staff who understood their responsibilities to report concerns. People had information about how to make a complaint and the registered manager responded using the providers policy.
People were allocated staff at regular intervals; this was reassessed and reduced as they became more independent. Staff received training and supervision that supported them to carry out their roles.
Staff assisted people to become more independent in preparing their meals and promoted healthy eating. Where people were unable to prepare their own meals, people were signposted to providers that could deliver meals.
People received care from staff that showed kindness and compassion. People were treated with respect and dignity.
The registered manager used learning from incidents, feedback and complaints to improve the service. They carried out audits to assess and monitor the service to look for areas of improvement.
The registered manager was proactive in developing relationships with other organisations to ensure a smooth transfer of care or to improve the resources available to people.
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.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was Good (published 5 July 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.