Since the Care Quality Commission (CQC) came into being in 2009, healthcare facilities around the UK have had a clear and consistent set of regulations they must abide by.

These standards, put in place within a care home or hospital, can be managed, communicated and reinforced centrally, with visible signage and regular meetings.

It is vital to note, though, that homecare providers are every bit as required to be in compliance with CQC standards as residential care locations.

What is homecare judged on?

There is no difference between the criteria the CQC apply to residential or at-home care:

– First and foremost is the safety of the individual receiving the care.
– Next is the effectiveness of the care to provide the quality of life promised by the service.
– How caring the in-home worker is – in terms of compassion and respect – is also graded.
– Also important is how responsive the staff proves to be to each service user’s feedback.
– And finally – how well-led the carers themselves are by a fair and open organisation.

We can prepare you for testing

CQC inspections can occur at almost any time – and, with homecare services, there may or may not be a 48-hour warning before. So, rather than taking the risk of a reputation (and future business) sullied by a poor score, many firms are increasingly looking to prepare their staff and systems.

Care 4 Quality. offers a range of services to do just that – from training courses to mock inspections:

Quality Assurance Training will help those in management or supervision roles focus on which work processes to most closely audit, how to regularly monitor these toward good CQC scores, and manage any areas which prove to need improvement.

CQC Inspection Preparedness Training, meanwhile, provides more detail on how to comply with the particular administrative evidence required by CQC inspectors. It’s especially important your staff understand Key Lines Of Enquiry (KLOEs), since much of the assessment will depend on these.

Finally, mock inspections are a safe way to stress-test your frontline services. Our experienced consultant will survey whether your service is meeting all relevant KLOEs. And, if there are any breaches, your organisation will be provided with a full report, including an action plan to correct any current problem areas.