Radiant Life Care

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

Safe – this means we looked for evidence that people were protected from abuse and avoidable harm.

At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people were safe and protected from avoidable harm.

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.

People and their relatives told us there was a learning culture at the service. They felt confident, that if they were to raise any concerns, the management would take appropriate action to reduce the likelihood of them happening again.

The provider had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. Staff listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were learnt to continually identify and embed good practice.

The provider had a system in place to record and monitor accidents and incidents. Records of accidents and incidents were reviewed by the registered manager and actions taken to reduce the likelihood of them happening again. There was evidence that learning from incidents and investigations took place as these were discussed during staff meetings, staff supervisions and management meetings. Procedures were in place for staff to follow in an emergency. There was an on-call system in place so there was always a member of the management team available.

The provider worked with people and healthcare partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety was managed or monitored.

People's needs were assessed before they started using the service. The assessment included all aspects of care, such as the person’s mobility, their nutritional needs, personal hygiene care, medicines, and social lifestyle. The management team obtained as much information as possible from people and their relatives to ensure they had enough information to enable them to meet people’s needs. This helped to ensure people received care from staff who understood their health conditions or preferences in how care and support were delivered to people.

The provider worked with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and the best way to achieve that. Staff concentrated on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm, and neglect. The provider shared concerns quickly and appropriately.

People were protected from the risk of abuse because the provider had taken steps to identify the possibility of abuse and prevent abuse from happening. The systems for safeguarding people from abuse had improved since our last inspection.

People told us they felt safe at the service and had no concerns on the way staff provided them with care and support they needed. A person said, “I am very safe here, the staff are very good to me.” A relative told us, “It is a safe place, [Person] is safe with the staff.”

Staff were clear about their responsibilities to report concerns and were able to describe the action they would take if they witnessed or suspected any abusive or neglectful practice. A member of staff told us, “If I have any concerns about abuse, I will report this to the manager.”

Staff had received safeguarding training and were aware on how to escalate any concerns that they might have to external agencies. We also noted this topic was discussed during staff meetings and supervisions.

The provider worked with people to understand and manage risks by thinking holistically. Staff provided care to meet people’s needs that was safe, supportive, and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them.

Potential risks about people’s safety were assessed to ensure they were supported to remain as safe as possible. Risks associated with people’s care and support had been reviewed following incidents or accidents as part of the procedure staff needed to follow. There were measures put in place to ensure staff supported people safely. Risks assessments covered areas such as nutrition, moving and handling and medicines management. This gave staff guidance on what action they should take to reduce risks and to keep people safe. Staff were able to tell us what risks people had and how to manage those.

The provider detected and controlled potential risks in the care environment. They made sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care.

Potential risks to people had been assessed so they could be supported to be in a safe environment by avoiding unnecessary hazards without being restricted. Where people were identified at risk, appropriate measures were put in place, for example, if lighting needed improving to ensure staff were safe when attending to people in the community. Staff knew about people’s health needs and ensured they were safe when carrying out any task. The provider had a system to ensure all equipment was maintained and serviced.

The provider made sure there were enough qualified, skilled, and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

People and their relatives told us there were enough staff working for the service. Some of the staff had worked at the service for some time. This helped to ensure people received consistent care from staff who knew them well. From staff rotas, we noted people were supported by the same staff members unless the staff were on leave or not well. The provider had a system to monitor when staff arrived and left for their care visits. This helped to ensure people received their visits on time and the office staff could inform people if staff were running late.

People were protected by appropriate recruitment processes. The provider ensured appropriate checks had been carried out such as criminal records check before staff were employed and started work. This helped to ensure people were not exposed to staff who were not suitable to work with people using care services. Staff files contained a checklist, which clearly identified all the pre-employment checks the provider had obtained for each member of staff.

People were supported by staff who had received appropriate and relevant training. Staff had attended various training programmes related to their roles, such as safeguarding adults, medicine management, infection control, moving and handling, and health and safety. Staff received regular one to one meeting with the manager, and this helped the management team regularly assess and monitor staff’s ability to meet people’s needs. A member of staff told us, “We do regular training, some online and some face to face.”

The provider assessed and managed the risk of infection. They detected and controlled the risk of it spreading and shared concerns with appropriate agencies promptly.

The provider had systems in place to prevent the spread of infection and ensure people as well as staff were safe. Staff had personal protective equipment (PPE) such as gloves and aprons available to them to protect the spread of infection. They also had received training in this area. Staff knew what their responsibilities were, such as proper hand washing procedures. They told us they had access to a good stock of PPE as needed.

The provider made sure that medicines and treatments were safe and met people’s needs, capacities, and preferences. Staff involved people in planning, including when changes happened with their medicines.

The service had suitable arrangements to protect people using the service against risks associated with the unsafe management of medicines. People told us they received their medicines when they needed to have them. A person told us, “The staff help me with my medications.” The service had a medicine policy, which outlined the safe handling of medicines. Staff had received appropriate training to ensure they were competent to administer medicines. We saw medicine administration record (MAR) sheets were completed correctly.