Access Dignity Care Limited Also known as Access Dignity

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

The service was in breach of legal regulation in relation to person-centred care. Improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

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 provider always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People and their relatives told us staff were kind, caring and respected their privacy. Comments included, “The carers are lovely. Some are chattier than others, but they all demonstrate kindness. They will often bring my wheely bin in for me, which they don’t have to do”, “My carers are all of a different nationality to me. They are all very supportive and helpful. I can’t fault them”, “I feel they respect me at all times as they are polite and treat me as a person as they understand my needs” and “I can’t fault them. They are polite, they respect [family members] home and always leaving things tidy.”

Staff we spoke with understood how to be respectful and promote people’s dignity. A staff member told us, “We give positive care and we close curtains and cover people.” A staff member added, “The company is very caring about staff, if we have any difficulties they support us.”

A professional told us, when asked if staff were caring, “Very much so.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Care plans had been developed since the previous assessment to consider people’s individual needs and preferences to ensure these were reflected in their care. Staff were respectful of people’s personal, cultural, social and religious needs. A staff member told us, “I make sure to celebrate important holidays or special occasions that are meaningful to each service user. For example, if a service user celebrates a particular religious or cultural holiday, I help them mark the occasion by following their traditions or supporting them in any way they need, to make them feel valued and respected.”

People and relatives told us staff were considerate of their personal, cultural, social and religious needs. A person told us, “They know all my likes and dislikes; I tell them about them.” A relative said, “Some staff know [person] lived in India and they chat with them about their past.”

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. The registered manager told us, “One of our most effective training courses is a day in the life of. We set up a visit for them which takes place in the office as though staff are walking into a service user visit. Then [training manager] sits with staff and does a summary of how that visit went.”

Care plans included information about people’s strengths and abilities and how staff should promote these. For example, one care plan recorded, “I am independent with my oral care. Staff to follow [persons] preferred routine as detailed above, encouraging independence.”

People told us staff delivered their care in their preferred way and encouraged their independence where possible. A person told us, “I can do things independently; the staff make sure I do. That is why they always leave my trolley close to me when they leave so that I can move around independently if I need to. I requested that I am not sent male carers for personal care and they have respected my wishes.”

The provider listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

The provider had completed additional training for staff in responding to emergencies. A staff member told us when we asked how they would respond to a burn or scald. They said, “I would cool the skin with cold/tepid water for 20 minutes and ring 999.” Another staff member said, “If someone falls, we are not allowed to pick them up we call careline or 999. We frequently call the office if we need help.”

People told us staff responded to their immediate needs to minimise any discomfort. A relative told us, “They use the hoist well, but my [family member] doesn’t like it and gets very distressed when they are in it. The carers are aware they get distressed so they try to calm them, they speak to them calmly and give them reassurance that they are safe.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

The provider had processes in place to promote staff well-being such as policies, procedures, supervision, and appraisal. Additional incentives were in place for staff and the registered manager told us staff were awarded gold stars which could be used as currency. Managers and people who use services can award stars. The registered manager told us of one staff member who had earned enough gold stars to pay for a flight home to see their family.

Staff were positive about the support they received. A staff member told us, “I am very happy working in this company. This company is very good. All the team members are very kind and supportive.”