Nursing Direct Ltd - DCA Office

People's experience of using this service and what we found:

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of right support, right care, right culture.

Right support People were supported to have maximum choice and control over 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.

Some people using the service and their relatives said communications from the office when staff were late for their calls, could be improved. Other people said communications were good and they said they were informed if staff were going to be late.

Relatives told us they felt they and their family members were safe and were protected from the risk of abuse. The service had appropriate safeguarding procedures. Staff told us they received regular training and they knew how to safeguard people from abuse and the processes that should be followed where concerns arose.

Assessments of people's needs and any risks were carried out and formed part of the care plan. Relatives told us these care plans were reviewed appropriately and drawn up together with themselves. Risk management strategies were in place as part of the assessment and support planning process. This meant risks to people and to staff were minimised and people's care was appropriately delivered to meet their needs.

There were robust recruitment practices in place that meant new staff were safely recruited. There were

sufficient staff levels to meet people's needs.

Appropriate policies and procedures were in place to ensure people received their medicines safely. Comprehensive training was available for staff on the safe administration of medicines. This together with appropriate supervision and monitoring meant when required people received their medicines, it was administered safely and staff had clear guidance to follow.

Right care The provider had ensured that appropriate training and supervision was available for staff. This included understanding and how to manage best practice for infection control and the use of PPE.

There were systems in place to ensure that accidents, incidents and risks were appropriately recorded. Analysis of the information meant any trends could be identified and actions put in place to reduce the likelihood of events re-occurring in the future.

People and their relatives told us they were supported by a regular team of staff who knew them well and were able to identify their likes and dislikes. They were supported to eat and drink according to their dietary requirements taking into consideration their preferences.

Right culture People told us they received good quality care from kind and caring staff. They said in most cases their care was delivered by regular staff and this provided the consistency and continuity they needed. They told us they were treated with dignity and respect. They told us staff had the right skills to deliver appropriate care and support.

People were confident that any concerns would be addressed appropriately and resolved by the registered manager. They told us the registered manager welcomed feedback.

People told us they thought the service was well led and that they were very happy with the support they received.

There were effective systems in place to monitor the quality of the service provided to people which ensured good governance. The service had systems in place to notify the appropriate authorities where concerns were identified. The culture of the service was positive, open and person centred.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk