Archived: Q1Care Limited

Updated 22 August 2017

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check on concerns brought to our attention and whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

We last inspected the service on 11 August 2016. At that inspection we found the service was good in all domains. That is was the service safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. The service received an overall good rating. At this inspection we focussed on specific and limited areas of the safe and effective domains.

This visit took place on 5 July 2017. It was a focused inspection to follow up on concerns that had been raised about various aspects of the operation of the service.

This inspection was announced. The inspection was carried out by one inspector. Before the inspection we sought feedback from the local authority in which the service was located and it was confirmed that they had received no concerns about the service. We checked records relating to the focus of this inspection, such as notifications. Notifications are reports of events that the provider is required by law to inform us about.

During the inspection we spoke with the registered manager and office based personnel and checked records relating to the focus of this inspection. This included care files, records of relevant training, supervision for all staff and relevant documentation. Following the inspection we sought the views of all staff who were actively working at the service.

Updated 22 August 2017

This inspection took place on the 11 August 2016 and was announced.

Q1Care Limited is a small domiciliary care agency. Care and support is provided to people in their own home to promote their independence and well-being.

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.

People told us that they felt safe with staff and would be confident to raise any concerns they had. The provider’s recruitment procedures were mostly thorough and medicines were managed safely. There were sufficient staff to provide safe, effective care at the times agreed by the people who were using the service.

There were procedures in place to manage risks to people and staff. Staff were aware of how to deal with emergency situations and knew how to keep people safe by reporting concerns promptly through processes that they understood well.

Staff received an induction and spent time working with experienced members of staff before working alone with people. The induction process corresponded with the 15 standards that health and social care workers need to complete during their induction period. Staff were supported to receive the training and development they needed to care for and support people’s individual needs.

People and their families were complementary of the services provided. The comments we received demonstrated that people felt valued and listened to. People were treated with kindness and respect whilst their independence was promoted within their homes and the community. People received care and support from familiar and regular staff and would recommend the service to other people.

People’s needs were reviewed regularly and their care and support plans promoted person-centred care. Up to date information was communicated to staff to ensure they could provide the appropriate care and support for each individual. Staff knew how to contact healthcare professionals in a timely manner if there were concerns about a person’s wellbeing.

The provider had a system to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service that people received and identified areas for improvement.