Would providing support to go out into the community for anxious service users be classed as specialised care?

 

Answered by Barry Price

From your question, it is unclear exactly what you are actually proposing to do, but here is some information I hope you will find useful.

‘Specialised care’ can relate to a number of different factors. For example, within the NHS it covers complex health and medical conditions, whilst within the community it can also relate to supporting individuals with a learning disability, a mental health condition, brain injury, physical disabilities as well as sensory and long-term conditions.

I cannot advise on the specifics of your question as just because someone is anxious about going into the community, does not mean they require specialist care and support. A good care plan and well-trained, experienced staff can deliver this.

The bigger picture is ensuring the service user has a person-centred care and support plan with appropriate positive behaviour support (PBS) plans and risk assessments in place. These should include any health professionals’ input, such as community mental health teams.

The CQC requires registration if you propose to carry out the regulated activity of ‘personal care’. However, exemptions may apply in your case. Check out a previous answer to this here:

https://www.qcs.co.uk/ask-sheila/as-a-self-employed-carer-do-i-need-to-register-with-the-cqc/

I would also suggest reading the CQC guidance on ‘Personal Assistants’ which includes the ‘Scope of registration’:

https://www.cqc.org.uk/guidance-providers/registration/personal-care-ongoing-role-introductory-agencies-individual-care