Special measures care service now rated 'good'

A care service previously rated as "inadequate" by inspectors and placed in special measures has now been told its care is "good" after making a number of improvements.

First Choice Medical Solutions Ltd, which provides in-home care for people with learning disabilities and autism in Hertfordshire, was told changes needed to be made by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in June 2023.

Issues raised included concerns about leadership and safety, but CQC said "significant improvements" had since been made and its overall rating was raised from inadequate to good.

A First Choice spokesperson said the decision reflected "the hard work, dedication, and commitment of our entire team to providing the highest standard of care for those we support".

The service, based in Cheshunt, was inspected in October to follow up on improvements CQC told leaders to make at a previous inspection.

CQC found the homecare provider had made improvements in all aspects of its service and said the organisation was no longer in breach of regulations.

Hazel Roberts, CQC's deputy director of operations in the East of England, said: "When we inspected First Choice Medical Solutions Ltd we found significant improvements had been made in response to concerns we raised at our last inspection.

"We were pleased to now find a leadership team who were passionate and delivering person-centred, high-quality care to people that meets their individual needs."

Rating the service provided as good in all five measurable areas of "safe", "effective", "caring", "responsive" and "well-led", the CQC report concluded: "The service is performing well and meeting our expectations."

First Choice Medical Solutions Ltd said in a statement: "Over the past few months we have implemented significant improvements across all areas of our service, focusing on enhancing the quality of care, strengthening our governance processes, and ensuring the wellbeing of both the people we support and our staff.

"This positive outcome from the CQC is a testament to the collective effort of all our key stakeholders and the hard work and dedication of all staff who works within the organisation."

The company added that the new rating had given staff "motivation to keep pushing forward to deliver even better outcomes for those who rely on our services".

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