Heartfelt Care

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

Improvements to the governance systems had been implemented by the provider. The management team were embedding these systems and continuously monitoring and improving when necessary. The management team had a strong working relationship all having their own roles and responsibilities. They had developed a good working relationship with the local authority quality team and listened to their advice and guidance. People and staff had confidence in the management team and felt included in decisions made. The registered manager had made all necessary notifications and information sharing as required.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The registered manager and management team were very passionate about delivering high standard. Everyone at Heartfelt Care had the same vision for the service, it came from the management team who were committed and were involved in the day to day running of the service.

We observed improvement in all areas we highlighted as requiring improvement since the last inspection. Improvements in the service had been established and was being embedded and developed further. This meant people were receiving care from a team who had the same shared goal. A robust monthly programme of checks, monitoring and audits identified areas for improvement. This included spot check observations made of care staff whilst they carried out their work. Quality assurance audits included, medication, accidents and incidents, time keeping and consistency. There were clear processes in place to ensure the service continually sought to improve, this was obvious during the assessment. The management team actively sought the views of people and their families through surveys and reviews. A relatives told us, “They do listen, they’re very good.” The management team had developed a newsletter to keep people and their relatives informed about what was happening at heartfelt Care. The service had a statement of purpose which described the vision and values of the service. It stated its aim is ‘to provide excellent domiciliary care support that it effective, safe, responsive, and well-led to clients in their own homes within a 15-minute drive of Yeovil… to continuously improve as an organization and have an open, honest, and collaborative culture and values.

Staff were positive about the management of the service. Comments included, “The management team is very approachable and always happy to help I never feel nervous asking anything;” “I think Heartfelt care is a good company to work for. The staff are very friendly and are at the end of the phone if you need advice and support. Whether it's for a client or yourself.” And “Yes, they have been incredibly supportive in my role so far. Staff receive regular supervision and ongoing support.

The provider had responded positively to our previous inspection findings. We saw they had developed their management team and supported staff to be upskilled and promoted into different roles. They had a management structure in place with defined roles and responsibilities. Staff were supported to obtain higher levels of health and social and management training to help them in their roles. The management team were clear about the vision and values of Heartfelt Care and knew what they wanted to achieve. They listened to people they supported and valued their staff team. There was a schedule of quality assurance systems in place to support the management team review and assess the service delivery. The provider understood the requirements of the duty of candour. This is their duty to be honest and open about any accident or incident that had caused or placed a person at risk of harm.

Staff knew where to find relevant policies to support them should they need to raise concerns formally. They knew they should speak with the management team to escalate concerns or outside agencies if not appropriate to speak to them.

The provider had regular staff meetings where staff were kept informed and asked for their views. The provider had policies and procedures in place to support staff in speaking up and raising concerns. This included up to date policies in relation to safeguarding and whistleblowing.

People were supported by a staff team who were happy in their work.

The management team promoted diversity and was an inclusive employer. Policies and procedures were in place and incorporated all aspects of recruitment and staffing such as equality, diversity, fairness, and protected characteristics.

People and their relatives were complimentary about the management team and who to contact should they need to. People and their relatives were happy and comfortable to speak to any of the staff who visited them.

At the last inspection, we found the provider in breach of Regulation 17 (Good governance) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. This was because systems and processes were not operated effectively to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service. At this assessment we found that considerable improvement had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of Regulation 17. The provider had a robust schedule of audits and checks in place to monitor quality and safety and identify areas for improvement. This included audits and checks of medicines being formally completed, care plan monitoring and analysing incidents, to ensure lessons were learnt and measures implemented to prevent any re-occurrence. Audits of 6 care plans were also completed every month to ensure they were up to date. The registered manager had made all notifications to CQC as required by law. A notification is the action that a provider is legally bound to take to tell us about any changes to their regulated services or incidents that have taken place in them. An overall action plan was in place to provide a framework and timescales for planned developments. For example, in the April 24 Action plan they had set an action ‘Improve tracking and recording of actions resulting from staff meetings.’ They were developing a format to do this. Staff provided positive feedback about the management of the service and found them supportive. The registered manager told us that they had a good office team around them and with the new electronic systems they were able to monitor the quality of care delivered.

People and their relatives were complimentary of the management team.

Staff felt confident supporting people should they wish to make a complaint and were aware how to report accidents and incidents. They were positive in relation to the communication they received from the management team.

The local authority quality monitoring officer had been working with the provider since our last inspection. We received positive feedback from the local authority quality monitoring officer and how the provider had acted upon all their guidance and recommendations.

The management team had a strong commitment to improving the service and were open to suggestions for improvement, recognising the importance of joint working with partner agencies. Staff were also aware of the value of working in partnership, both with professionals and with other staff. Documentation and evidence was promptly provided to CQC as part of this assessment.

The registered manager told us about the ways in which they were continually looking to improve the service. This included the action plan from a recent survey from people using the service.

Evidence throughout the assessment showed improvement and the process of continual learning were part of the fabric of the service. The processes of auditing and making changes to improve the service were continuously discussed and acted upon by the management team who all wanted to further improve Heartfelt Care. The service had systems of oversight in place in relation to accidents and incidents and safeguarding concerns which evidenced that learning had been identified and actions were implemented within the service. Following the last CQC inspection of the service, the provider developed an action plan to ensure they addressed the areas in which we recommended improvement. The action plan was regularly reviewed and updated.