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Homecare Southlodge, London Road, Mitcham.

Homecare Southlodge in London Road, Mitcham is a Homecare agencies specialising in the provision of services relating to caring for adults over 65 yrs, caring for adults under 65 yrs, dementia, learning disabilities, mental health conditions, personal care, physical disabilities and sensory impairments. The last inspection date here was 18th December 2019

Homecare Southlodge is managed by Southlodge care Limited.

Contact Details:

Ratings:

For a guide to the ratings, click here.

Safe: Requires Improvement
Effective: Good
Caring: Good
Responsive: Good
Well-Led: Requires Improvement
Overall:

Further Details:

Important Dates:

    Last Inspection 2019-12-18
    Last Published 2018-12-08

Local Authority:

    Merton

Link to this page:

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Inspection Reports:

Click the title bar on any of the report introductions below to read the full entry. If there is a PDF icon, click it to download the full report.

6th November 2018 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

This inspection took place on 06 November 2018 and was announced.

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to older adults and younger disabled adults.

Not everyone using Homecare Southlodge receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided. At the time of our inspection 19 people were receiving care from Homecare Southlodge.

There was 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At our last inspection of 12 September 2017 we found a breach of regulations in relation to seeking consent from people. Staff were not always clear on the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and how to apply this to their roles.

Following the last inspection, we asked the provider to complete an action plan to show what they would do and by when to improve the key question ‘Effective’ to at least good. At this inspection we found improvements had been made to enhance staff knowledge of the MCA; however, we identified other areas for improvement.

We found one breach of the regulations in relation to staffing. The provider did not ensure that they obtained staff employment history, nor did they always act to ensure staff provided full professional references. The provider could not always be assured of staff experience in a health and social care role or explain gaps in staff employment history.

Improvements were also needed to ensure that quality assurance systems were effective in ensuring that issues in service delivery were addressed in a timely manner. The registered manager did not ensure that medicines administration records (MAR) were always checked in a timely manner, nor did they identify the issues that we found at this inspection.

Medicines record keeping required improvement to ensure that staff were able to explain reasons for any gaps or omissions in prompting people with their medicines. People’s medicines records did not include a record of medicines prescribed, the reason for taking them and any possible side effects.

We also made a recommendation to the provider in relation to the personalisation of people’s care records. Care plans would benefit from reflecting people’s preferences in relation to any dietary choices or day to day preferences, and we recommended the provider review each person’s care plan to ensure this is updated.

Relatives felt that their family members received safe care from the service, and that staff supported them well. Staff were clear on the steps to take to prevent and control infection. People’s risk assessments clearly highlighted the potential risks that people faced, and guidance was in place to support staff to mitigate their occurrence. Staff knew how to identify and take action should there be any suspected abuse.

Staff were now clear on the principles of the MCA, and how this applied to their role. People were supported by staff to access healthcare professionals at times that they needed them, as well as being supported with their daily food and fluid intake.

People received support from staff that were caring and kind. People felt that their privacy and dignity was respected, and staff accommodated people’s religious and cultural beliefs. People were involved in decisions about the care and support that they received.

Care plans were regularly reviewed to ensure that they reflected people’s needs, with the involvement of the

12th September 2017 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

This inspection was carried out on 12 September 2017 and was announced. We gave the registered manager 24 hours’ notice of the inspection because it is a small service and the registered manager is often out of the office supporting staff. We needed to be sure that someone would be in.

Homecare Southlodge provides support and personal care to people, some of whom have dementia and learning disabilities, in their own homes. At the time of our inspection six people were using the service.

This service had changed their location and therefore was re-registered with the CQC as a new service. This is the first inspection for this service which was registered in September 2016.

The service had a registered manager in place. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At this inspection we found that the service provided staff with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) training, however staff had limited knowledge in applying the principles in practice. There was a risk that staff had not worked within the MCA and therefore people were not appropriately supported to make their own decisions when needed. This was a breach of regulation 11 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

Staff told us they were provided with on-going advice and guidance from the management team as required. However, staff had not received regular one-to-one supervision and appraisal meetings with the registered manager to discuss their developmental needs. We have made a recommendation about this.

Staff had the knowledge and skills to meet people’s care needs. They undertook regular training courses as appropriate for their role. People chose what they wanted to eat and drink and staff assisted people in preparing their meals. People were up-to-date with their routine health appointments and received professional support as appropriate.

People were provided with safe care at the service. Staff followed safeguarding vulnerable adult’s procedures and reported their concerns in line with the service’s policies and procedures. Risk assessments were carried out to ensure that people had the necessary support to manage risks. Staffing levels provided were sufficient which ensured that people had the support they required. The service followed safe staff recruitment processes. People were assisted to take their medicines as prescribed.

Staff followed people’s care plans to meet their individual needs. People were involved and made decisions about the care they wanted to receive. The service encouraged people’s relatives to take part in their care planning. We found that staff were caring and respected people’s dignity when providing personal care. People had support to stay independent for as long as it was possible.

The service responded to people’s care needs as necessary. Staff used daily notes to record activities taking place at the service and shared this information with the team. People were encouraged to take part in the initial assessment process which ensured their participation in the care planning. People and their relatives were provided with opportunities to share their experiences and to provide feedback about the service.

Staff told us the registered manager was approachable and provided good leadership at the service. Regular team meeting were used to discuss people’s well- being and the support they required. Systems were in place to keep staff informed about the service’s policies and the procedures to ensure consistent care. The registered manager observed staff’s performance and took actions to address the issues identified.

 

 

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