HIQA have launched a scoping consultation for Draft National Standards for Home Support Services
Overview of the Draft National Standards for Home Support Services
HIQA are developing draft standards for Home Support Services in Ireland. The aim of the standards is to promote progressive quality improvements in home support services and give a shared voice to the expectations of those using the services, service providers and staff.
There are currently no established national standards for home support services in Ireland.
HIQA launched the consultation process to ask people to share their experiences and offer their views on aspects of care provision they believe that the new standards should cover.
You can find more information on the consultation process on HIQA’s website.
Objectives of the National Standards for Home Support Services
When developed, the National Standards for home support services will:
- Provide a common language to describe what high-quality, safe and reliable home support services look like.
- Be underpinned by a set of key principles which are used consistently across all national standards, all working together to achieve person-centred care and support.
- Enable a person-centred approach, by focusing on outcomes for people using home support services and placing them at the centre of all that the service does.
- Help people using home support services to understand what high-quality, safe services should be and what they should expect from a well-run service.
- Create a basis to measure the quality and safety of a service’s performance against the standards, by identifying strengths and highlighting areas for improvement.
- Promote day-to-day practice that is up to date, effective, and consistent, and based on the best available evidence.
- Provide a framework for home support service providers to be accountable to those using their services, the public and funding agencies, by setting out how they should organise, deliver and improve the care and support they provide.
HCI Support Offering
HCI has over 16 years experience in supporting health and social care organisations in building robust Quality and Safety Management Systems to meet regulatory and best practice requirements. Contact HCI if you would like more information on how we can support you in preparation for the new National Standards.