CQC update for adult social care providers

14 January 2021 update on our regulated activity, strategy consultation and more

The independent regulator of health and social care in England CQC Update   14 January 2021   A regular update for providers and professionals working in adult social care, sharing the latest guidance on COVID-19 and CQC's approach during this period. Update on CQC's regulatory approach We've updated on our regulatory approach during the pandemic.  At the start of the pandemic we paused routine inspections and focused our activity only in response to risk. This was the right thing to do and we have kept this decision under review. In response to the very latest position, we want to be clear that for the time being we will continue to only undertake inspection activity in response to a serious risk of harm or where it supports the system's response to the pandemic. We will continue to act to keep people safe from harm, protecting their human rights while supporting providers to focus on delivering care, including the COVID-19 vaccination programme. You can read more information on what this means for providers on our website. The world of health and social care is changing. So are we. On 7 January we published a formal consultation on our future strategy. The draft strategy is the product of over 10,000 interactions with stakeholders and sets a bold ambition for CQC over the next five years.  The consultation will run for eight weeks, closing on 4 March 2021. We want to hear what you think by either submitting a consultation response or adding a response on our digital participation platform CitizenLab. You can respond by logging in our joining our digital participation platform here. Promoting sexual safety through empowerment We're working with Supported Loving, Skills for Care and the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) to help develop resources to support sexual safety and empowerment in social care. As part of this work, Supported Loving are doing an extensive evidence review looking at all the existing UK learning materials surrounding this topic. This evidence review will look in detail at what existing learning materials are available, how they are being used and what impact they have.  You can get involved by completing a short survey or joining a focus group to share your opinions and experiences. You can find out more information and sign up for an event by visiting the pages below: Focus group for staff supporting people with a learning disability 19/01, 11am   Focus group for staff supporting people with a learning disability 19/01, 2pm Focus group for staff supporting autistic people 20/01, 11am Focus group for staff supporting people with an acquired brain injury 20/01, 2pm Focus group for staff supporting older people 21/01, 11am Focus group for staff supporting older people 21/01, 2pm Focus group for staff supporting people experiencing poor mental health 22/01, 11am Focus group for staff supporting people experiencing poor mental health 22/01, 2pm   Focus group for staff supporting disabled people 25/01, 11am Focus group for Staff supporting disabled people 25/01, 2pm Changes to CQC notification forms  We are making changes to our notification forms to make them easier for you to use and improve the quality of information collected. The death of a service user notification form has now been updated, with other forms being updated soon.   To make sure submitting a notification to us is as easy for you as possible, make sure you are using the latest form either by downloading from our website each time you submit a notification or accessing through the provider portal. Visit our website for more information on this work and information about what you need to notify CQC about and how you can do it and we'll let you know through this bulletin as more forms are updated. Research study - coping with infection control measures in care homes during COVID-19 The University of East Anglia (UEA) are looking for care home staff to take part in some research to inform their study on what it has been like to cope with trying to prevent the spread of infection in care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. If you have worked at least eight shifts in a care home in the last four months you can take part by completing this short survey, with the opportunity of being entered into a prize draw. UEA are also offering the opportunity to discuss your experience via phone or an online conversation. You can email here if interested in taking part.  UK-wide COVID-19 vaccine delivery plan launched Read the latest update from the Department of Health and Social Care in which they update on the publication of a UK COVID-19 vaccines deliver plan. This sets out how the largest vaccination programme in British history will be delivered. Read the update and watch this video to find out more about the vaccine delivery plan. Join Social Care  The Join Social Care website was launched to support care providers recruitment needs during the Covid-19 crisis. The recruitment platform is free of charge and makes it easier for care providers to reach potential employees in their local area. Over 20,000 candidates have registered on the platform to date and they are a mix of experienced care workers and those looking to enter the sector for the first time. Hundreds of candidates are registering each week and are eager to be matched with local care providers. Join Social Care is for CQC registered care providers and is available to both residential and home care providers. You can sign up here to find and contact candidates in your local area. Re-using named patient drugs as medicines supply NHS England and NHS Improvement have published a standard operating procedure (SOP) on running a medicines re-use scheme in care homes and hospice settings. This scheme should only be considered where there is an immediate need for the medicine and either: no other stocks are available no suitable alternatives exist for an individual You can read our supporting guidance here. 'Because we call care' public campaign - focus on unpaid carers On 12 January we launched the latest activity spike of our public campaign to encourage people to feedback on their care experiences. #BecauseWeAllCare is a joint initiative with Healthwatch England and works alongside voluntary and community partners.    Our latest spike of activity focuses on reaching unpaid carers. Unpaid carers play a crucial role in supporting people with care needs and we want to encourage them to tell us about the care they, and their loved ones receive from health and social care services. We want to encourage people to report poor care to give us their insight into what people are experiencing. We want to hear about good care too so we can celebrate it and share good practice. Thank you for all your support with the campaign to date. We hope you will continue to support the campaign through your own communication channels. We have a range of campaign assets that you can use to encourage feedback.  You can find out more about Because we all care on our website.  Improving Palliative End of Life Care (PEoLC) in ASC services Professor Bee Wee, National Clinical Director for Palliative and End of Life Care (PEoLC) at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, has been in touch with CQC to flag up an offer of support from NHSEI to Adult Social Care providers to help improve the quality of PEoLC in Adult Social Care and outcomes for people. The support offer is titled "EOLC- Getting to Good" and the steps providers need to take to access support are set out below: The provider identifies the need for PEoLC support The provider emails details of their needs using the attached template to the PEoLC team at: england.palliativeandendoflife@nhs.net . Providers should receive a response within 2 weeks. The PEoLC team will review the information and arrange a call with the provider to conduct a gap analysis and signpost to resources The support offer includes QI facilitated engagement and desktop reviews A central or local team will maintain regular contact to support improvement If appropriate, local support can be drawn in to help sustainability Follow up arrangements will be agreed The PEoLC central team will maintain an "open door" for requests for further support In addition, providers can access the Ambitions for Palliative and End of Life Care publication at http://endoflifecareambitions.org.uk/ a national framework for local action in PEoLC, and which includes information and resources about PEoLC. Capacity tracker  In December 2020, the CQC daily update survey for home care providers was integrated into the Capacity tracker. Please continue to submit your information through the Capacity tracker and contact NHSE/I should you have any problems.  Practical collaboration during COVID-19: working together to support adults with learning disabilities webinar Join Skills for Care for their free online webinar to hear how social care providers and the NHS have collaborated in Oxfordshire to support adults with learning disabilities through the pandemic, and gain practical tips to support you in your area. The webinar takes place on 28 January from 1.30-2.30pm. For more details and to register your place you can visit the Skills for Care website. COVID-19 'Lockdown Learnings' My Home Life England have collaborated with a number of care homes to share some of the things they found helpful during the first lockdown in 2020. Staff were asked to reflect on 'what they could be proud of' in terms of how their care homes managed during those challenging months. You can download a visual mindmap which shares these learnings on the My Home Life website. Research project on impacts of hot weather on care homes and their residents  We're supporting the ClimaCare research project run by University College London (UCL), Oxford Brookes University and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). It is looking into the impact of climate change on care settings, in particular at what can be done to mitigate the impact of rising temperatures. The project is starting in a number of care homes in London, Newcastle and Manchester over summer. It will monitor the indoor environment during periods of hot weather and the response of residents and staff to heat.  ClimaCare are looking for providers to participate. There will be no expense for participating, and you will receive tailored advice from international experts on how to improve your resilience in hot weather and heat waves. If you are interested in taking part please email April Cole , CQC or Professor Rajat Gupta , Oxford Brookes University by 26 February. Regulation of coronavirus testing We have updated our guidance that describes where services offering testing for coronavirus need to be registered with us or not. All CQC offices are closed Please do not send post - visit our website for details on how to contact us.   Useful guidance There is now an overview of adult social care guidance on the GOV UK website Updated guidance on visiting arrangements in care home Updated guidance on discharge into care homes: designated settings Updated arrangements for visiting out of the care home Updated support for care homes  New national lockdown guidance Health and wellbeing of adult social care workforce New guidance on looking after people who lack mental capacity Guidance on lateral flow testing of visitors in care homes Updated Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing for homecare workers Adult social care COVID-19 winter plan 2020/21 Guidance on how to work safely in care homes Guidance on how to work safely in domiciliary care DHSC guidance for care staff supporting adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults during COVID-19 Guidance on Infection prevention and control Updated guidance on admission and care of people in care homes Updated guidance for supported living services during coronavirus Updated guidance on testing and who is eligible  Guidance on management of staff and exposed patients and residents in health and social care settings. Guidance on IPC precautions for stepdown in hospital or discharge to home or residential settings. Guidance on ASC Infection Control Fund Guidance on steps to take following the death of a person who worked in adult social care in England Reducing risk in adult social care Updated guidance on the provision of home care  We have published guidance on how to get the most out of inspection, what a good inspection looks and feels like.  We have published our Infection, Prevention and Control questions and prompts for care homes We have updated our equality and human rights impact assessments Ethical framework for adult social care  We have published guidance on working within the Mental Capacity Act during the coronavirus pandemic The British Psychological Society has issued guidance on meeting the psychological needs of people with learning disabilities and their carers The Central Alerting System (CAS) is an online cascading system for issuing patient safety alerts, important public health messages and other safety critical information and guidance to the NHS and others, including independent providers of health and social care. Providers can register to receive these alerts through the MHRA website Interim guidance on DBS and other recruitment checks  Visit the GOV.UK website to apply for coronavirus tests for your service Guidance clarifying existing practice for verifying deaths outside of hospitals and providing a framework for safe verification of death CQC guidance for providers delivering antibody tests or blood tests The Nursing and Midwifery Council has an area on their website dedicated to information about COVID-19 The Health and Safety Executive has published guidance on RIDDOR reporting of COVID-19 Community health services standard operating procedure (SOP) The British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP)  have jointly produced a protocol that can be used by various groups of professionals to verify death remotely with a clinician The Enhanced health in care homes framework has been expanded to include oral health; falls, strength and balance; mental health; wound care; continence promotion and management; and flu prevention and management. The framework can be used to support your engagement with your aligned primary care network NICE COVID-19 rapid guidelines  Advice and information on looking after your mental health and wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak from NHS England and the Mental Health Foundation Investigation and initial clinical management of possible cases Accessibility resources to help you communicate about COVID-19 Resources explaining the flu vaccination, who should have it and why NHS COVID-19 app support translations Information on how to use the BLS Health Access service to help with communicating in British Sign Language while getting a test for COVID-19 Guidelines for organisations booking communication professionals in healthcare settings during COVID-19 Beyond Words is providing free picture stories and illustrated guides to support people with learning disabilities and autism through the coronavirus pandemic Imperial College London, in partnership with the BME Health Forum and the North West London Clinical Commissioning Groups have produced a series of videos aimed at encouraging people to continue to use health services if they are unwell. They are available in English, Arabic, Farsi, Kurdish and Sylheti.  Resources from Learning Disability England Signhealth has made their InterpreterNow remote BSL interpretation service available for free across all healthcare services Signhealth is providing a videos of summaries of key coronavirus guidance in BSL Public Health England stay at home guidance, translated and in easy read NHS guidelines translated into up to 50 languages by Doctors of the World and find video advice here Easy read information on COVID-19 from Mencap Public Health England resources in accessible formats COVID-19 guidance for providers of services for people experiencing rough sleeping The handwashing rap, produced to help people who have a learning disability Follow us on Twitter!  Keep up with our work with professionals and provider organisations in England by following us on Twitter @CQCProf.

We are England's independent health and adult social care regulator.     Join our digital participation platform for providers and professionals to get involved in CQC's work - help inform policies, take part in discussions and test new products.   Problems viewing this email? Click here to view online. Find out more about our work Contact us Unsubscribe

 

This email was sent to ooseims.archieves@blogger.com using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: Care Quality Commission · 151 Buckingham Palace Road · London · SW1W 9SZ