The high quality of a service providing care and support to people in Moray has been widely praised by inspectors and service users.
Home Care Service โ Care at Home, which is managed on behalf of Health & Social Care Moray by Moray Council, is celebrating its new rating of โvery goodโ from the Care Inspectorate following an unannounced inspection carried out over five days in November.
Inspectors spoke to people using the service, their families and staff, and also observed practice and reviewed documents to assess the quality of the service.
In the report published this week, Care at Home has been awarded grades of 5 (very good) in all four areas inspected – support to peopleโs wellbeing; leadership; the staff team; and the planning of care and support.
During their discussion with the inspectors, most people expressed high levels of satisfaction with the standard of their care. They spoke about being treated with dignity and respect by their care staff who they described as knowledgeable, competent and skilled. Timely and sufficient assistance from social care assistants further contributed to the positive feedback.
The inspection highlighted the exceptional work of the management team โ described as โvery good, dedicated and experiencedโ and who worked hard to improve the quality of care provided.
The Moray-wide service supports and enables people to live independently within their own homes for as long as they are able and it is safe to do so, providing up to 4,000 hours of care each week.
Service users told how they received an โexcellent standard of careโ and described staff as โguardian angelsโ and โvery special people with hearts of goldโ.
One service user said: โWe are very lucky as a family for the care our (relative) receives from all the carers that come into (our relative’s) home – each and every one of them are very special individuals, very attentive and very hard working and we don’t know what we would do without them – they are all one in a million.โ
Another added: โThe support my (relative) receives from the team is invaluable as it enables (them) to continue living in (their) own home.โ
Simon Bokor-Ingram, Chief Officer of Health & Social Care Moray, said: “This is a fantastic report and highlights the excellent work provided by the Care at Home Service. I would like to offer myย congratulationsย and thanks to all of the team members – this really is well deserved and is a reflection of their dedication and professionalism.โ
John Campbell, Provider Services Manager, said he was proud the continued focus on improvement by the service meant its quality rating had gone up from a 4 (good) from the previous inspection in 2020, to the current โvery goodโ grade 5 mark.
โWe are delighted to have the professionalism and hard work of staff recognised by the Care Inspectorate following last monthโs inspection. To have achieved such a high quality rating at a time when social care services nationally continue to be under extreme pressure is testament to the unwavering commitment shown by our teams,โ Mr Campbell said.
โI would like to thank all colleagues for their continued dedication and resilience. What you do each and every day – including on Christmas Day and over the festive period – to care for and support residents and their families in our community is very much appreciated.โ
The inspection report commended the serviceโs proactive approach to working with individuals to find solution to challenges they experience. Person-centred care plans ensured peopleโs wishes and preferences were paramount. The plans were regularly reviewed, evaluated and updated, which meant they stayed relevant to people’s current needs. Medication was well managed and staff were very good at recognising and reporting potential adult support and protection matters, which helped to keep people safe.
The service had good contingency measures in place and was able to meet people’s needs and keep people safe during challenging times. One service user told inspectors how social care assistants had walked to reach them during a storm when roads to their house were closed.
The experienced and dedicated leadership team demonstrated a deep understanding of the care at home model, navigating the challenges facing the sector with their value based approach to decision-making. This ensured all areas for improvement kept the needs and wellbeing of people at the centre and resulted in very good outcomes for people. Performance was well managed and linked to improvement work.
Staff overwhelmingly reported a supportive management structure, with line managers listening to their views, supporting their training and development and providing help and guidance when required. Each job role had a clear structure for learning and training pathway attached to it. This ensured staff had the knowledge and skills to do their job well.
A comprehensive induction programme was in place for new staff to equip them with the knowledge and expertise they required to provide very good quality care.
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- For anyone inspired to join this exceptional team, the Moray Council Care at Home Service is currently recruiting with induction starting in early March. To learn more and apply, search for Social Care Assistant on the www.myjobscotland.gov.uk/councils/moray-council/jobs website.
- The full inspection report is available on theย Care Inspectorateย website.
