Here at Be Independent Home Care we heartily welcome the recent report published by the Law Reform Commission recommending that the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) should be given the power to set standards and regulate professional home care services. As one of the few independent, fully Nurse owned and managed home care providers in Ireland we are deeply concerned that the home care sector is unregulated and we strongly urge the government to act on the new recommendations to regulate the sector. In the absence of regulation in the home care industry Be Independent Home Care have developed its own comprehensive in house quality management system. This system includes a full set of 50 Standard Operating Procedures (S.O.P’s) that outline established procedures that must be strictly adhered to by each carer when delivering home care services. Both owners at Be Independent Home Care are registered general nurses with An Bord Altranais (The Irish Nurses Board) and have over 20 years experience in the provision of top quality healthcare and social care services. Quality of care is at the core of all service provision and in addition to being nurses the directors at Be Independent Home Care haold post graduate qualifications in health and safety and Social Care.
Be Independent Home Care understand that trust is vital when allowing a carer into our clients home and so selection, security vetting and close supervision of our care team is at the core of what we do. We have a rigorous recruitment policy which ensures that each care candidate undergoes a thorough security vetting process. This includes a detailed interview by a suitably trained member of the senior management team, reference checks and a Garda Clearance. Every member of our care team must have a minimum of Fetac Level 5 in Practical Home Care Skills (or equivalent) and once recruited each carer undergoes internal induction training. Our own in house induction programme provides instruction on the contents of our Standard Operating Procedures (S.O.P’s) and includes other relevant subjects such as health & safety, manual handling etc.
The client and the client’s family are always provided with the opportunity to meet the assigned carer before the care programme commences. Following commencement of the care relationship our care team work strictly to both the client care plan and our quality policies and procedure. Our experienced managers, all of whom are qualified nurses and registered with An Bord Altranias (The Irish Nursing Board) closely supervise each carer and client contract and constantly review our clients’ needs and adjust their care plan accordingly. In addition to regular quality care phone calls to the client or nominated contact person our care managers make regular supervisory visits. We also operate a 24 hour oncall service. We have full employers, public liability and professional indemnity insurance cover.