29 September 2021
During a routine inspection
About the service
Moonstone Care UK Limited is a domiciliary care agency which provides personal care to people living in their own home. At the time of the inspection 35 people were using the service.
People's experience of using this service and what we found
We found recruitment practices were not always safe. We could not be assured that staff employed were of good character and safe to work with people. Risk assessments lacked detail on how to mitigate the risks people faced and staff were not always sufficiently deployed. Therefore, we could not be assured that people’s need were always met in a safe way. Medicines were not always managed safely, which meant we could not be assured people received their medicines as prescribed. Care plans were not always consistent, and people did not receive personalised care. Systems for monitoring the service were not always effective in identifying the issues found during our inspection. Audits were not routinely carried out.
People were treated with kindness and compassion, however, we found people’s assessment of need required more detail to include, for example, their preferences for how they wanted to be cared for. We have made a recommendation in relation to the recording of assessments.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Staff asked people for their consent before providing care.
People using the service, their relatives and staff were complimentary about the way the registered manager ran the service and how approachable they were. People and relatives told us they felt safe with care staff who treated them with dignity and respect. People were involved in decisions about their care and staff were described by people and relatives as caring and kind. Staff received training and supervision to assist them to effectively carryout their role.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
This service was registered with us on 21 January 2019 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This was a planned comprehensive inspection based on the service starting to deliver personal care to people in December 2019.
Enforcement
We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service.
We have identified breaches in relation to staff recruitment, risk management, staffing levels, assessments and care planning and systems for monitoring and auditing the service.
Full information about CQC's regulatory response to the more serious concerns found during inspections is added to reports after any representations and appeals have been concluded.
Follow up
We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.