Right at Home - Mid Hampshire

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. When we inspected, 58 people were receiving support that included personal care.

Staff had an excellent understanding of people's individual needs and the care remained focussed on providing person-centred care that was achieving good outcomes for people. There was a strong emphasis on providing people with the best continuity of care possible which enabled staff to develop close bonds with people. Staff went out of their way to support people in a way that met their individual needs and preferences and helped them to overcome barriers, regain skills and confidence all of which had made a positive difference to their lives. The service worked collaboratively with health and social care professionals, trying innovative ways to support people with their healthcare needs. Staff supported people to continue to feel involved in their local community and to take part in activities that were meaningful to them. They understood the increased impact that isolation had had on people since the pandemic started and did all they could to compensate for this. Health care professionals told us that the service had developed a reputation for providing outstanding and responsive end of life care. The end of life care was holistic, and person centred, and staff were particularly skilled at providing end of life care with empathy and compassion.

Staff had confidence that the leadership team managed the service well and had provided a nurturing and supportive environment that helped to ensure they were able to perform their role effectively. Overall, there were high levels of satisfaction amongst the staff team, despite the challenges of the last 18 months. Staff mostly reported a positive culture that was enabling, supportive and helped to ensure that they felt valued. Overall, there continued to be effective quality assurance systems in place which helped to ensure that the registered manager and provider had an oversight of the quality of care people were receiving. The service made an active contribution to the local community and worked effectively with health and social care professionals to meet people's needs.

Overall, people's medicines were managed safely and the systems in place supported this. There were some areas which could be developed further in line with best practice standards. People told us they felt safe when receiving care. Staff had a positive attitude to reporting concerns. They were confident the registered manager would act upon these. Risks to people and to the care workers supporting them had been assessed and planned for. Overall, there were sufficient staff to provide people with a service that was reliable, provided good continuity and was safe. Staff followed safe infection prevention and control practices. Staff understood their responsibility to report and record safety related events. Opportunities to learn from safety related incidents were not always maximised.

Staff were positive about their induction and training, which was delivered around the needs of people using the service.

We have though made a recommendation about providing more in-depth mental health training for staff.

Supervisions and spot checks had fallen behind the frequency noted in the providers policy, however, overall, staff all felt well supported in their roles and felt able to seek advice or guidance from the leadership team when needed. There was a holistic approach to assessing, planning and delivering care and people described the care and support they received as being very effective at meeting their needs. Staff worked collaboratively to ensure that people's healthcare needs were met. 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. Staff supported people to have access to food and drink of their choice.