We are very pleased to confirm that our recent inspection by CQC saw our Dorset branch rated as Good across all five areas of inspection.
Who are CQC and why are their inspections important?
CQC (the Care Quality Commission) are the independent regulator of all health and social care in England. We make sure health and social care services provide people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care and encourage care services to improve where needed.
What does the inspection look for?
The inspection, made in March 2022, looked to ensure that the services we provide across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole are safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. This means:
- Services are Safe – this means CQC looked for evidence that that people are protected from abuse and avoidable harm.
- Services are Effective – this means CQC looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieve good outcomes and promote a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.
- Services are Caring – this means CQC look for evidence that we involve people and treat them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
- Services are Responsive – this means CQC look for evidence that the service meets people’s needs
- Services are Well-led – this means CQC look for evidence that our service leadership, management and governance assure high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promote an open, fair culture.
The inspections are carried out by inspectors who look to confirm we meet all legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care act 2008. As part of the inspection, CQC speak to our service users and their families to understand their views on our services.
Here are some of the highlights of the report:
“People told us they felt safe when supported by the care staff. People and their relatives described both care and office staff as being kind, competent and well trained.”
“Risks in people’s lives were well known with all avenues explored to minimise the identified risks without being unduly restrictive. A professional noted staff “demonstrated good competence in keeping people safe and managing risk.”
“People were supported by safely recruited staff who had received safeguarding training and demonstrated a good understanding of the signs and symptoms that could indicate someone was experiencing harm and abuse. A person expressed, “I feel really comfortable and confident with the way they care for me.” Staff were confident if they raised concerns appropriate action would be taken.”
“People and their relatives felt listened to and involved in their day to day care. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.”
What does it mean to us?
The report doesn’t just cover how our service users feel, it also takes into account our amazing staff, noting “Care staff and office staff worked cohesively. Staff told us they enjoyed working for the service and supporting their colleagues. Staff told us the service were flexible in helping them manage caring responsibilities and have a good work-life balance.
Heather Hepworth, Registered Manager for Sugarman Health and Wellbeing Dorset said, “We are delighted to have our hard work recognised by the CQC, its testament to the incredible work all our team pull together to do. It takes every single one of us to make a difference to our service users lives and it’s brilliant to get the recognition from CQC that supports everything we do on a daily basis.”
Mark Woolley, Managing Director at Sugarman Health and Wellbeing added “This is a great achievement for our Dorset team and reflects the hard work they put into delivering the best standard of care service possible for our service users. I’m glad to see our team’s dedication reflected in the recent Good rating from CQC.”