Encompass Care Specialist Mental Health Services Elsadene

We found the following examples of good practice.

Staff used personal protective equipment [PPE] when interacting with people. People were supported to understand the measures that were in place regarding infection prevention and control, such as face masks and aprons.

There was an infection control lead. This enabled the housekeeping team and care staff to work effectively together to ensure infection prevention and control measures were followed

Infection prevention and control audits took place and action plans were developed to follow up on any required actions. This ensured the provider had effective oversight of infection control measures. The providers infection prevention and control policy was up to date.

Regular COVID testing was carried out at the service for both staff and people living there, and contingency plans were in place in the event of any outbreak of Covid-19 or other emergency.

The provider had ensured staff had access to training about their emotional response to the pandemic and to counselling support.

Staff told us they knew how to raise any concerns or complaints around IPC practice if they thought it is unsafe or not effective without fear or discrimination.

The service demonstrated a good understanding of when and how to access local IPC resources (for example local health protection team or infection control leads) when they need advice and support.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found