Incidents will happen in any care service. What matters is how quickly they are reported, how well they are investigated and whether the service learns from them.
Make reporting easy
If reporting a fall means finding a form in the office, it will be done late or not at all. Care workers should be able to log an incident from the visit, with the time, what happened and what they did.
Act on it the same day
The office should see a new incident immediately, check the person is safe and decide whether a safeguarding referral or notification is needed.
Investigate proportionately
A minor incident needs a short review. A serious one needs a full investigation. Record who looked into it, what they found and what changed.
Look for patterns
Review incidents monthly. Repeated falls at the same time of day, medication errors on one round or several concerns about one worker all point to something that needs fixing.
Close the loop
Tell the person, their family and the care worker what happened next. Update the care plan and risk assessment.
Build a reporting culture
Staff report more when they see that reporting leads to support and improvement rather than blame. Thank people for raising concerns and share, without names, what the service learned.
Keep training current
Safeguarding and incident reporting should be part of induction and refreshed regularly. Make sure everyone knows who the safeguarding lead is and how to reach them out of hours.
Use your data at governance meetings
Bring incident trends to your regular management or governance meeting. Record the discussion and the actions agreed. This is exactly the kind of evidence that shows a service is well-led.
Frequently asked questions
What must be notified to CQC?
Certain events, including some injuries, abuse allegations and deaths, must be notified. Check CQC’s guidance on statutory notifications.
Who makes a safeguarding referral?
Anyone can raise a concern. Your safeguarding lead normally makes the referral to the local authority.
CEVERO Care has an incidents and safeguarding log with alerts to the office. Book a demo.