So you want to know how to prepare your care home for post-pandemic CQC inspections? 

CQC inspections are intricate, time-consuming processes that entail an inspection team, long hours of interview sessions with employees and patients, substantial evaluations of documentation, assessments by the inspection team, and full reviews of documentary evidence and policies. 

The only way to ensure your care home meets the CQC’s standards is by remaining prepared all the time.  

With the recent coronavirus outbreak, CQC has made changes to the way it works. In fact, on 16 March 2020, the organisation has written to all registered health and social care providers about how CQC would be adapting their regulatory approach in response to the coronavirus outbreak. According to the official statement, CQC has decided to

• To cease routine inspections ((inspection work continues in a small number of circumstances, such as where there are allegations of abuse)
• Interact remotely to give assurance of safety and quality of care 
• Provide extra support to registered managers in adult social care

The CQC further stated that “they encourage social care providers to act in the best interests of the health of the people they serve, with the top priority the protection of life, to use discretion and act in the best way they see fit.”

So what does all this mean?

Quality assurance and compliance management of care homes is an ongoing process. Make sure to keep track of regulations and always look for areas to improve. Keep in mind that it is not uncommon for a care home’s rating to drop down in a matter of time. 

In our previous blog, we have explained how CQC Inspectors will carry out detailed discussions with your customers and employees, comparing what they hear to written records to gain a sound understanding of your services. They will most likely select key areas of your service and ask you to explain how you fulfil quality standards, possibly requesting supporting data such as training records or care plans. The CQC bases its decision on two critical frameworks: the Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOEs) and the Quality Standards. 

Based on this, we would recommend a few tips on preparing your care home for CQC inspection post-pandemic.

Let’s jump right in, shall we?

Documentation

• Make sure all your paper works are accurate and up-to-date, especially your care home’s statement of purpose, any related health and safety risk assessments and method declarations. 
• Documentary evidence is crucial in every inspection; if you are unable to establish compliance, it would be difficult to prove to CQC inspectors you are following the regulations. 
• Organise and store all the documents for CQC inspections in a single folder. This would help in making the evaluation easier and convenient. The folder should include your care home policies, procedures and any related pieces of evidence. 
• As we all know, health regulations and policies are constantly changing. Make sure to keep your finger on the pulse and respond to it effectively. 

Staff training

• Provide detailed instructions or training sessions to your care home staffs about the CQCs, their inspections and how it operates.
• Introduce an ongoing monitoring procedure for your staff to make sure they meet all the training and regulatory requirements set forth by CQC.
• Examine safeguarding training and provide opportunities for refresher learning and improvement.
• Make sure your employees know where they can find important information including phone numbers and current copies of the practice's policies and procedures.

Patient involvement

• Involve your care home patients in discussions of care, experience, quality and safety.
• Create and conduct patient surveys to collect their genuine feedback and evaluate how effective your services are.  
• Invest in patient engagement services that demonstrate how residents needs have been understood and acted on. 

How can you make the process simpler and convenient?

Well, we understand that Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections can be strenuous and how nerve-racking it is to be the subject of CQC’s probe.  But it needn’t be that way. We can help.

JMS One can offer you the most simple and straightforward way to automate all your compliance and employee training processes into a single technology platform. With our integrated modules and customized features, JMS One helps to 

• Reduce the administrative burden and costs
• Eliminate paper trails and chances of errors
• Simplify operations by providing employees with a centralised training system for anything from statutory/mandatory information to updated policies and procedures

All you have to do is get in touch with the experts for some professional support. We would be more than happy to help you out.