Professional Care Support Services Ltd

Updated 8 October 2019

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

This inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats and specialist housing.

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

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 23 September 2019 and ended on 24 September 2019. We visited the office location on the first day of inspection.

What we did before the inspection

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 the registered manager, a senior supervisor and three care workers. We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records. We looked at three 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.

After the inspection

Following the inspection we spoke with one person using the service and three relatives. The provider also sent us additional evidence of the improvements they had made.

Updated 8 October 2019

About the service

Professional Care Support Services Ltd is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people aged 65 and over. At the time of the inspection 31 people were receiving care from the service.

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.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

At the time of inspection we found that some improvements were needed to ensure staff recruitment files reflected their employment history. The provider took immediate action to remedy this following our inspection. Staff knew how to report potential safeguarding concerns. People received their medicines safely and suitable risk assessments were in place to mitigate risks to people. Effective measures continued to prevent the spread of infection.

People and relatives felt that the care delivered was responsive to their needs. We recommend the provider ensure that people’s care records fully reflect their preferences. The provider took appropriate steps to support people requiring end of life care. No complaints had been received at the time of our inspection.

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 access other healthcare professionals, as well as staff taking steps to support their eating and drinking needs. Staff were supported through regular training, supervision and appraisal.

Staff ensured they were kind, caring and respectful towards the people they visited. People were supported to be as independent as they were able to, and staff respected their privacy and dignity. People and relatives were consulted in relation to their care needs.

The registered manager was thought of positively, and ensured they were accessible to people, relatives and staff. Quality assurance systems were in place to review service provision and drive improvements.

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 10 May 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.