What does the CQC look for in ‘Good’ live-in care?
If you’re researching live-in care – for yourself or a loved one – chances are you’ll have read about the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
The CQC is the independent regulator of health and social care in England. It monitors, inspects and regulates care services – including 24-hour live-in care – listening to feedback from the people receiving care, and their families.
The aim of the CQC is to give people reassurance and peace of mind that their live-in home care is meeting the required standards.
If standards are not met, and the CQC has concerns, it has the power to take action to protect people.
CQC inspections
As part of an inspection of a live-in home care service, the CQC will do an in-person visit, talking to people and gathering evidence.
They will meet clients, family members, staff, other healthcare professionals and the service’s management. Inspectors will also observe care, review records and inspect policies.
The overall CQC ratings
After the inspection, CQC inspectors will write a report and give it one of four ratings:
- Outstanding – means that the service is exceeding the CQC’s expectations
- Good – means that the service is performing well and meeting the CQQ’s expectations
- Requires Improvement – means that the service is not performing as well as it should. The CQC will tell the service how it must improve
- Inadequate – means that the CQC has judged the service to be performing badly. The CQC will take action
CQC ratings: five key questions
This overall rating is underpinned by ratings in five key areas, judging whether a service is:
- Safe – are people protected from abuse and avoidable harm?
- Effective – does the care, treatment and support help people to maintain quality of life?
- Caring – do staff treat people with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect?
- Responsive to people’s needs
- Well-led – is the service’s management making sure that it’s providing high-quality care?
CQC reports
After an inspection, the CQC produces a comprehensive report detailing the reasons for its overall rating and its findings under each of the key key areas, and highlighting any areas for concern. You can read each report on the CQC website.
How the CQC rates Agincare’s live-in care services
Our live-in care service (elderly people and younger adults) is organised into three geographical teams: Central, South-East and South-West.
Working like this means the teams can really get to know their local area, and build strong networks of care workers. Each team is led by an experienced manager, who supports not only the care team members, but also the clients and their families.
All three of our teams were inspected by the CQC in 2019, and we’re delighted and proud that each team was found to be ‘Good’ by the inspectors. They achieved a ‘Good’ rating in every one of the five key areas.
You can read each team’s comprehensive report online, and here also is a flavour of how our live-in care service makes a positive difference to people’s lives:
Central
- The inspections noted that the team took care to respect people’s rights, including those related to ethnicity
South-East
- The CQC noted that staff were well trained and knowledgeable about people’s care and support needs
South-West
- The inspectors commented that staff knew people well, expressing care and affection for them when talking about them to the inspection team
