West STSS Hexham, a council-run reablement and bridging domiciliary service, retained its Outstanding overall rating at the September 2023 inspection, with Safe and Well-led both rated Good. The service demonstrated strong safeguarding, medicines management, person-centred reablement practice, and effective partnership working, with no failure themes identified.
Strengths
· People reported no missed appointments and staff stayed for their full allocated time
· Comprehensive induction described by staff as one of the most detailed they had received, with probationary reviews at 6 months
· 94% of survey respondents said they were treated with dignity and respect; 81% rated the service as very good
· Falls prevention audit benchmarked against Royal College of Occupational Therapy toolkit with actions taken
· Professionals praised the service's responsiveness and accessibility of managers
Quality-Statement breakdown (10)
safe: Systems and processes to safeguard people from the risk of abuse
Good
safe: Assessing risk, safety monitoring and management; Preventing and controlling infectionGood
safe: Staffing and recruitmentGood
safe: Using medicines safelyGood
safe: Learning lessons when things go wrongGood
well-led: Promoting a positive culture that is person-centred, open, inclusive and empoweringGood
well-led: Managers and staff being clear about their roles, and understanding quality performance, risks and regulatory requirements; Continuous learning and improving careGood
well-led: How the provider understands and acts on the duty of candourGood
well-led: Engaging and involving people using the service, the public and staff, fully considering their equality characteristicsGood