A Crysp Guide to CQC for Carers
The CQC, or the Care Quality Commission, can be an overwhelming topic, especially for those who are seeking guidance in the context of healthcare and care services in the United Kingdom. Fear not, Crysp are here to help! Throughout this blog, we will guide you through the important topics that encapsulate the importance of CQC for both care homes and carers. We will be taking you through subjects such as why health and safety regulations are important in care homes, how the CQC plays a crucial role in regulating care in the UK, the CQC framework and more.
Contents
What is the Care Quality Commission, and how does it affect carers and care homes?
The Care Quality Commission can be defined as the independent regulator of health and social care in England. When we refer to CQC for carers or care homes within this blog, we will be relating our discussion to the standards and regulations set by the Care Quality Commission for ensuring the quality and safety of care provided in care homes.
In the UK, it’s crucial for care homes to have regular inspections by the Care Quality Commission to assess whether they meet the fundamental standards of quality and safety. This means that inspections cover a range of important aspects within a care home, structured around five key questions. Check them out below:
Is it safe? - It's essential that care homes are safe for all individuals, such as residents, workers and visitors. Whether this may be appropriate workplace plans, emergency procedures or first aid kits, appropriate measures must be taken to prevent any accidents or incidents.
Is it caring? - Another crucial part of the CQC assessment is the level of care within the care home. Staff must be compassionate, patient, respectful and above all - caring - towards the residents.
Is it effective? - Following on from both of these measures, the assessor must be able to tell that the level of care provided achieves good outcomes for the residents, as well as an overall improvement of the health and well-being of residents. This could include following the correct procedures if a resident states that they are in pain or feeling unwell, or incorporating a wellness routine into a resident's morning to help enhance their mental health.
Is it responsive? - The CQC examines how well the care home responds to the needs or preferences of residents, especially any specific requests that will enhance their overall quality of life.
Is it well-led? - Finally, another key part of the CQC assessment is whether the leadership, management and governance of the organisation are providing high-quality care that’s based on individual needs.
If a care home does not meet the required standards, they may need to make important improvements or face enforcement action. To avoid this, compliance with CQC standards must be strictly adhered to. Providers typically need to have robust policies in place with well-trained staff, and a commitment to continually improving the services given to individuals. Those who are seeking information about a specific care home are encouraged to take a look at the CQC ratings and reports when they’re choosing a care home so that they can ensure maximum levels of quality and safety!
What are the different types of CQC inspections?
The CQC carries out a range of different inspections depending on the kind of institution that they’re focusing on. The first can be defined as comprehensive inspections, and they are used to make sure that services are providing care that’s “safe, caring, effective, responsive to people’s needs” as well as ensuring that they are “well-led”, as defined by the CQC itself.
The second type of CQC inspection is the focused inspection. These are smaller in scale in comparison to the comprehension inspections, but they follow a similar process. These kinds of inspections are carried out for a range of reasons, but typically they are carried out to examine something the CQC may be concerned about, which might have been raised during a previous inspection or through monitoring work.
The second reason why the inspections may be carried out is if there is a change in a care provider’s circumstances, such as if they’ve been involved in a takeover, a merger or an acquisition. As we discussed in the previous section, the five questions may be covered within the CQC inspection, or they may simply focus on one or two. It all depends on the circumstance, and every situation is different.
How does a CQC inspection take place and what are the key steps?
There are three key steps to a CQC inspection and the team will use the key questions to structure their investigation. From these chosen questions, they use key lines of enquiry, or KLOEs, to decide what to focus on specifically within that question. An example of this is when an inspection team may examine a care home’s protocol for identifying risks to understand whether a service or provider is safe and effective.
The key lines of enquiry help the CQC remain consistent with what they look at under the five key questions, and ensure that they focus on the areas that matter most. It allows the inspector(s) to understand where a provider is failing their service users, as well as where they are providing outstanding service. This assessment is made with a range of prompts and evidence. Check out this CQC-approved list below to find out how this is assessed:
Looking at care pathways, records and policies.
Speaking to individuals at the provider.
Creating focus groups or discussing events in groups.
Taking advantage of the comment cards within the provider.
Using information gathered from complaints or concerns from residents, visitors or workers.
Interviewing staff.
Observing care.
Now that we’ve discussed the key lines of enquiry that can help to structure CQC for carers, let’s take a look at the three key steps to a CQC inspection:
The beginning of the visit
At the start of the CQC inspection, the team or individuals will typically meet the senior staff or management team. During this meeting, the senior staff will be informed about who the inspection team are, the scope and purpose of the inspection and how they will communicate their findings. This is an essential part of the CQC inspection as it can alert individuals at the care home to the inspection process and inform them of any important procedures that may need to take place.
Gathering evidence and information
The inspector will use the key lines of enquiry to gather any important information and evidence. You get more detail on that here!
Providing feedback
Once the visit has concluded, the inspector will hold a feedback session with senior staff at the care home. A summary of what has been found during the visit will be discussed with the team, as well as any issues that have come up. Any action the service provider needs to take will be identified, along with a plan of action. Inspectors will also explain any further visits that may need to take place, alongside any conclusions that will be published.
We know that CQC for carers and care homes can be really confusing and intimidating, but we hope to have reassured you that the guidelines are actually pretty simple when it comes to CQC for carers! So, let’s continue reading and find out more about why care homes should register with the CQC.
Do care homes need to register with the CQC and why do they have to register?
Before any kind of care provider carries out any of the activities that the CQC regulates, they must first register with the CQC and meet some requirements too. When a care home registers with the CQC, the inspectors are able to check whether care providers meet the correct legal requirements. These include fundamental standards of quality and safety. Here’s a list of the standards:
Person-centred care - Providers must have care or treatment that is tailored to the needs of individuals.
Dignity and respect - All individuals must be treated with dignity and respected at all times while they’re receiving care. This includes privacy, being treated as equal and being given any support they need to remain independent, if possible.
Consent - Individuals must give consent before carers or workers at the care home can give care or treatments.
Safety - Providers must assess the risks to an individual’s health and safety during any care or treatment, and make sure they have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience.
Safeguarding from abuse - Carers must never neglect those they are caring for or use unnecessary or inappropriate restraint. They must also never limit an individual's freedom.
Food and drink - Individuals at the care home must have enough food and drink to keep them in good health while they are being cared for.
Premises and equipment - Equipment must be clean, suitable and looked after properly. It must also be secure and used properly.
Complaints - There must be a system in place so that if an individual feels that they need to make a complaint, they are able to do so with ease. The complaint must be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly, with action being taken if necessary.
Good governance - There must be plans in place so that any complaints can be solved quickly and easily. It’s crucial that there are systems in place to check on the quality and safety of care. These must help the service improve and reduce any risks to individuals’ health, safety and welfare.
Staffing - Providers must be suitably qualified, competent and experienced to make sure they can meet the CQC standards for carers. As well as this, staff must be given the support, training and supervision they need to help them do their job.
Fit and proper staff - The provider of care must only employ people who can provide care and treatment appropriate to their role. Providers must have strong recruitment procedures in place and carry out relevant checks such as on applicants' criminal records and work history.
Duty of candour - Carers must be open and transparent with individuals about their care and treatment. Should something go wrong, carers must tell individuals what has happened, provide support and apologise.
Display of ratings - The care home must display its CQC rating in a place where everyone can see it. They must also include this information on their website and make the latest report on their service available to anyone who needs to access it.
These are the main reasons why care homes must register with the CQC. Care homes must familiarise themselves with the specific regulations and guidance provided by the CQC, as well as regularly review and update their policies and procedures to align with any changes in CQC standards.
How can Crysp help you to manage your CQC responsibilities?
As we’ve mentioned, many of the topics that we’ve discussed can be somewhat confusing, and you may be wondering how to digest it all. Here at Crysp, we are dedicated to helping you to manage your CQC responsibilities. Interested? Take a look at this list that explains how Crysp can directly help you:
1. Crysp is a single platform for CQC compliance. We serve as a centralised platform that brings together a myriad of CQC compliance management. From policies to risk assessments, everything can be handily accessed in one central place. This will help you to keep organised and on track with all of your CQC needs for carers.
2. Secondly, Crysp is incredibly user-friendly. The platform has been designed to be simple and effective, ensuring that anyone can use it, no matter what kind of technical expertise you have.
3. We also offer a vast library of pre-written policies and procedures that align with CQC standards. These documents can be easily customised to suit the specific needs of any kind of organisation.
4. Keeping track of compliance deadlines and requirements can be challenging. Crysp simplifies this process of compliance deadlines and requirements by sending automated notifications and reminders to ensure that healthcare providers stay on top of their CQC responsibilities. This feature minimises the risk of missed deadlines and helps organisations maintain a proactive approach towards compliance.
5. We also provide tools and templates to streamline the risk assessment process, making it easier to identify potential hazards and implement appropriate preventive measures.
6. Data security and protection are essential when dealing with sensitive healthcare information, especially when it comes to patient records. Crysp adheres to stringent security standards, ensuring that data is stored securely and is accessible only to authorised personnel. The platform is also designed to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), safeguarding patient confidentiality and privacy.
And there we have it! A full guide all about CQC for carers and care homes. We hope that this blog has been helpful, and if you have any questions or concerns, you can request a demo, or get in touch with us here. We also have CQC guides for other service providers, such as dental practices, GPs and salons/aesthetic clinics.
