About the service:

Synergy Homecare- Rotherham is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of this inspection it was providing services to around 150 people.

People’s experience of using this service:

We found that people received a good service. The provider ensured care was delivered in a safe way, and had introduced electronic systems since the last inspection to improve the monitoring of call durations.

People told us they felt the staff were caring. They told us they got on well with staff. One described having “banter” with staff, and another described their regular care workers as being “like part of the family.”

Staff received training which was relevant to their roles. The provider had a system in place that meant if a staff member’s training expired they were not able to be assigned to undertake any care work. During the inspection we observed office staff arranging training for staff so that they remained up to date in their knowledge. People we spoke with told us they believed staff had received good training.

People were supported in maintaining good health, and staff liaised with external healthcare providers where appropriate to ensure that care was provided in a way that met people’s needs.

People were kept safe. They told us they felt safe when receiving care, and staff had received training in safeguarding and recognising the signs of abuse.

The provider had a system in place for managing complaints, although we saw they did not follow their own policy. We have made a recommendation that the provider adheres to their complaints policy so that complaints are better managed.

More information is in the full report

Rating at last inspection:

Good. The report was published in August 2016.

Why we inspected:

Scheduled inspection based on previous rating

Follow up:

Ongoing monitoring

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

The inspection took place on 21 July 2016, with the provider being given short notice of the visit to the office in line with our current methodology for inspecting domiciliary care agencies. The service was last inspected in 2014, and was judged to be complying with the regulations inspected.

Sevacare – Rotherham provides personal care to people living in their own homes in the Rotherham area. At the time of the inspection they were providing support to over 100 people.

The service had a registered manager in post at the time of our inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People’s care files showed that their care needs had been thoroughly assessed, and they received a good quality of care from staff who understood the level of support they needed. People told us that they experienced a good standard of care and that they found staff to be polite and knowledgeable.

There were systems in place to reduce the risk of abuse and to assess and monitor potential risks to individual people. Risk assessments on the whole were up to date and detailed. We found recruitment processes were thorough, which helped the employer make safer recruitment decisions when employing new staff.

Staff had completed a comprehensive induction and training programme before commencing work. This helped them meet the needs of the people they supported. Records demonstrated people’s capacity to make decisions had been considered as part of their care assessment.

People were involved in planning their care, and their views about their care and support was incorporated into how care was delivered. There was a system in place to tell people how to make a complaint and how it would be managed, and this was explained to people when they first started using the service.

The registered manager had a clear oversight of the service, and of the people who had used or were using it. However, care plans had not been formally audited for two years, meaning that the registered manager had not identified that care visits did not always last for the planned duration.

Staff received regular supervision and appraisal, and the standard and quality of care visits was regularly monitored.

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Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people’s safety and welfare. Staff had a good knowledge of the needs of people who used the service.

We visited three people who used the service and we telephoned and spoke with 16 people some of which were supported by their relatives. They said they were happy with the service provided at Sevacare and received sufficient information about the service they could expect to receive.

There were effective systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection. This included staff receiving training in this subject and the provision of protective clothing People we spoke with told us staff always wore the correct uniform and used gloves and aprons when assisting with personal care.

People were cared for, or supported by, suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff. Appropriate checks had been undertaken before staff started work.

The service had processes in place to monitor people's views and listen to their concerns about the service offered. People told us they had never had cause to complain about the service they had received. People we spoke with confirmed that the treatment they received was very good. One person said “I know my carers care about making me comfortable. You could not find better if you paid them twice as much. They never leave without asking if there is anything else I need.”

People we spoke with told us they received a good service from the agency; they said, “Staff know how I want my care, they are kind and I regard them more as friends than staff.” They told us carers mostly turned up on time and they would let them know if they were going to be late. People we spoke with told us carers always respected their privacy and rights and they helped them to maintain their independence.