A new year and many people are picking up where they left off. Some, however, are seeking pastures new and taking advantage of opportunities not there before, including that of being your own boss. Setting up in business is a feat in itself. But for those in health and social care, there is the additional hurdle of understanding (and complying with) both the legislative requirements and those of the regulator in England, the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
In setting out to would-be health and social care providers its expectations for quality service delivery, the CQC has engaged with the general public and users of registered services to define the following fundamental standards, below which your service must never fall.
Person-centred care: Care or treatment must be tailored to the individual to meet their needs and preferences.
Dignity and respect: Service users must be treated with dignity and respect at all times when receiving care or treatment. This includes ensuring they have privacy, when they need and want it; that they are treated as equals; and that they are given any support needed to remain independent and involved in their local community.
Consent: Service users (or anyone legally acting on their behalf) must give their consent before any care or treatment is given to them.
Safety: Service users must not be given unfair care or treatment, or be put as risk of harm that could be avoided. As a provider, you must assess the risks posed by any care or treatment to your services users’ health and safety, and make sure staff have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience to ensure service users remain safe during the delivery of any care or treatment.
Safeguarding from abuse: Service users must not suffer any form of abuse or improper treatment when receiving care or treatment. This includes neglect, degrading treatment, unnecessary or disproportionate restraint, and inappropriate limits on their freedom.
Food and drink: Service users must be provided sufficient hydration and nutrition to keep them in good health when receiving care or treatment.
Premises and equipment: The place where care or treatment is provided – as well as the equipment used therein – must be clean, suitable and properly maintained. Equipment must also be secure and properly used.
Complaints: Service users must be able to complain about their care or treatment. As a service provider, you must have systems in place to handle and respond to any complaints. Complaints should be thoroughly investigated and any remedial action taken, when identified as necessary.
Fit and proper staff: As a care provider, you must only employ people who can provide care or treatment appropriate to their role. There must be strong recruitment procedures in place, including any relevant checks, such as criminal records and work history.
Duty of candour: As a care provider, you must be open and transparent with your service users about their care or treatment. Should something go wrong, you must tell the service user what has happened, provide appropriate support and remedial action, and – importantly – you should apologise!
Display of rating: As a health and social care provider, you must display your CQC rating in a place where service users can see it; it must also be included on your website. The latest CQC report into your service should also be made available to service users.
Good governance: As a care provider, you must have plans in place to ensure you meet these standards. This includes effective governance and quality assurance systems to ensure any care or treatment is safely and properly delivered. Staff must be given the support, training and supervision needed for them to do their jobs.
Starting up in social care
As we start 2022, we thought it an appropriate time to revisit the standards and regulations that health and social care providers must fulfil – both as a helpful reminder to existing providers and as a guide to those that may be just starting out. Next week, we will begin to look at the regulations currently in place, taking an in-depth dive into each one.
In the meantime, we offer a Business Start-up Package for those interested in setting up a care company, which includes everything you’ll need to set up and build a successful business. You can also check out our series of blogs that discuss starting a care agency. For those that have been in the industry for a while, we offer CQC Mock Inspections, Compliance Audits and Bespoke Business Support to assist in developing your business to its full potential plus, Health and Social Care Policy Sets.
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Margaret Ross Sands
Business Support Director
Margaret has over 30 years of experience in Health & Social care having worked in various local authorities in England holding senior positions in Contracting, Commissioning, and Operationally for the LA’s own in house Care Service. She has a deep knowledge of Adult Social Care and is our main policy lead in terms of keeping up to date with the latest government legislation, case law and good practice guidance. On leaving the statutory sector Margaret… Read Margaret’s Full Bio
