Carers at Home's core values
At Carers at Home we aim to maintain the highest standards at all times.
How we assess our care workers
Our primary aim is to improve people’s lives and allow those who can no longer care for themselves adequately in their own homes to maintain their dignity and independence in a setting of their choice – their own home.
When undertaking home care or live-in care not only do we follow the minimum standards as set by The Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the local authority but we have added to them to ensure that they are suitable for the clients that we care for.
Our carers are assessed against five key values to ensure that you receive the best level of care.
1. Excellence ​
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Being a high performing organisation
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This means we don’t just come to work and do the minimum to get through the day. We strive to be the best in the sector, the best people that we can be and never cut corners so this excellence feeds through to our clients. We are constantly striving to improve.
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2. Caring
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Treating everyone with dignity and respect
This means we put our clients at the centre of our business and aim to make a positive difference to their lives. We keep at the forefront of our mind that maintaining a clients independence isn’t just about them physically living in their own home but about mental freedom as well.
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Is the client being treated with dignity and respect? Are they free to make their own choices? Are they being listened to and getting what they want and need? We remember that everyone is different and that everyone’s views, and ideas, staff included, need to be respected.
3. Integrity ​
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Doing the right thing
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This means that we will not cut corners and do the easy thing. We will do the right thing no matter what it takes. It is important to us that a trustful relationship is built between all members of staff, clients and the client’s family and any third party involved in the care. We are open to challenge and we are not afraid to apologise.
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4. Teamwork
Learning from each other to be the best we can be
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Although our care workers can appear to be remote from their colleagues at times they are the output of as complex machine. Inside the machine there are a significant number of cogs whirring to ensure clients receive what they need, when they need it. The machine doesn’t just include Carers at Home staff but the wider system including the family, local authority and other medical professionals.
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It is the duty of every member of the team to play their part and we encourage our staff to understand the view of all members of the team and to offer opinions and challenge where appropriate.
5. Positivity
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A positive attitude in everything we do
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We ask all of our staff to have a can-do attitude and be positive at all times. Nothing is impossible as long as we work as a team. We ask that we always find a way of making something happen as opposed to finding a reason not to do something.
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If we truly can’t find a way to make something happen, we will always try to compromise and find an alternative. Our clients, families and staff deserve to work and live in a happy, energetic and positive environment.
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Our duty of candour
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We have a duty to be open and transparent with people who use our services and other ‘relevant persons’ (people acting lawfully on their behalf) in relation to care and treatment.
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We have clear guidelines that we follow. In hopefully the unlikely event that things might not be as they should be, our procedures include informing people about the incident, providing reasonable support, providing truthful information and an apology.
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To learn more about duty of candour on the CQC website please click here.
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Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOE'S)
To ensure the very best levels of home care and live-in care, we constantly ask the five CQC questions. Is our Service…. Safe? Effective? Caring? Responsive? Well led?
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In general a domiciliary care agency has to ask themselves these question every two and a half to three years when they are inspected.
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We have a weekly management meeting to sit down and ask ourselves these questions to ensure we are always delivering the highest quality care and constantly improving.
1. Safety
People are protected from abuse and avoidable harm.
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2. Effectiveness
People’s care, treatment and support achieves good outcomes, promotes a good quality of life and is evidence-based where possible.
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3. Caring
Our staff involve and treat people with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
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4. Responsiveness
Our services are organised so that they meet people’s needs.
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5. Leadership
The leadership, management and governance of our company assures the delivery of high-quality person-centred care, supports learning and innovation, and promotes an open and fair culture.
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To learn more about key lines of enquiry click on the link below to visit CQC's website