Background to this inspection
Updated
31 August 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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal
requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to
provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team:
Two inspectors carried out the inspection and an expert by experience assisted with phone calls to relatives and people. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Service and service type:
Alina Homecare - Guildford is registered as a domiciliary care agency. However, they provide live in carers to the five people who use the service and live in their own homes
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 announced.
What we did before the inspection:
We used the information the registered manager sent us in the provider information return (PIR). 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 reviewed the evidence we had about the service. This included any notifications of significant events,
such as serious injuries or safeguarding referrals. Notifications are information about important events
which the provider is required to send us by law.
During the inspection:
Due to the complexity of communication we were able to speak with one person who used the service and three relatives who acted on behalf of people using the service. We spoke with four staff including the registered manager, quality manager, recruitment manager and a staff trainer. We checked care records for three people, including their assessments, care plans and risk assessments. We looked at three staff files and records of team meetings. We also looked at medicines’ management, accident and incident records, quality monitoring checks and audits.
After the inspection:
The registered manager sent us further information, including the home's continuity plan, staff training, quality audits and examples of good care. We also sent out questions to eight staff members and had responses from three.
Updated
31 August 2019
About the service:
Alina Homecare - Guildford is a domiciliary care agency providing live in personal care to people who live in their own homes. The service supported five people who were all receiving personal care at the time of our inspection.
People's experience of using this service:
People consistently experienced good care because the service was well-led and organised.
The provider's values were shared and practiced by staff who people often referred to as being like family
members.
People were supported by staff who promoted their independence as much as possible, and who were creative in their ways of achieving better outcomes for people. People and relatives told us carers were motivated to make a difference and that they made them feel inspired and gave them confidence to make the required changes.
People were provided with a variety of opportunities to go out into the community. This included trips to do shopping, coffee shops or for a walk. The provider had also recently held a party to celebrate it’s third anniversary and had invited people both past and present to attend.
People and relatives told us they felt safe because of the quality of care they experienced. The provider took great care when recruiting new staff to ensure they met the values of the service. Staff understood and practised their responsibilities to keep people safe from harm.
People were supported by staff who had the right skills and knowledge to provide care that met people's assessed needs. 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.
Relatives consistently told us that staff were kind and caring. Staff respected people, treated them with dignity and involved them in decisions about their care. People experienced continuity of care because they were supported by a core team of staff who understood their needs. This meant people experienced care and support that was responsive to their needs. People and relatives reported that they were very satisfied with the quality of care and support they experienced.
Potential risks to people had been assessed and measures put in place to mitigate these. If accidents or incidents occurred, staff took action to reduce the risk of similar incidents happening again. Medicines were managed safely and staff maintained appropriate standards of hygiene and infection control. Staff supported people to maintain good health and worked effectively with any professionals involved in their
care.
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:
This is the first inspection for this newly registered service. This service has been rated Good.
Why we inspected:
This was a planned inspection based on our inspection process.
Follow up:
We will continue to monitor intelligence 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.