Archived: Murrayfield Hospital -Wirral

Updated 25 May 2016

Murrayfield Hyperbaric Treatment & Training Services Limited was established in 1993; the centre has been providing a service at the current location for 12 years and is privately owned and managed by the technical and research director.

The hyperbaric medicine unit is located within the ground of the grounds of an independent private hospital. The unit provides hyperbaric (high-pressure) oxygen therapy for a range of conditions and is available to NHS and private patients of all ages and to Police, Fire Service and Military personnel.

The service is available to adult patients 24 hours per day 365 days per year. The chamber is a category 1 unit, as defined by the Cox report categories (The Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Cox report 1994) which meant facilities should be capable of receiving patients in any diagnostic category, who may need advanced life support either immediately or during hyperbaric oxygen treatment. The service provides two multi-place chambers (space for more than one person at a time); there was space for seven people in each chamber. Staff could lock in and lock out of the chamber. It was equipped for staff to look after critically ill patients if required.

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment involves breathing pure oxygen at higher than atmospheric pressures within an enclosed chamber. The atmospheric pressure varies, but can be the equivalent to being up to 40 feet under water. Hyperbaric therapy is and can be used to treat a variety of medical conditions. This includes decompression illness sustained after diving; the treatment of radiation tissue injury; treatment of necrotising wounds; carbon monoxide poisoning and gas embolism (air bubbles in the blood vessels). Treatment was available 24 hours a day all year round for patients requiring emergency treatment. Elective patients received treatment every weekday. Length of treatment depends on the specific condition suffered by the patient.

Consultants, the coast guard, emergency departments, other emergency services and GPs referred patients to the service. Most none emergency patients were treated through a contract with NHS England before elective treatment commenced. Emergency patients could be referred from anywhere within England dependent on availability, clinical need and transport requirements. The unit was commissioned to treat adults for emergency and elective work. There were no special reviews or investigations of the hospital by the CQC at any time previously. There had been no previous CQC inspections. The registered manager had worked at the service for 22 years.

Updated 25 May 2016

There was a small team of staff at the centre who worked well together. We found the medical director, the facility manager and the hyperbaric nurse to be knowledgeable and skilled. They had a positive ethos towards good quality care. Both the medical director and facility manager were visible and approachable.

We found emergency access to the service was good. Staff could be called in and the unit opened within an hour. The average wait from referral to treatment was six weeks. We found this to be comparable with the average wait for treatment in other such units. Staff at the hyperbaric unit were compassionate and caring. They were aware of the experience for patients and were very supportive to people who were anxious and did not just take their hyperbaric treatment in isolation. The timing of the morning and afternoon sessions meant that patients did not have to travel very early or return home late. There was flexibility for elective patients to attend sessions to fit in around their own routine.

There were clearly defined vision and values for Murrayfield Hyperbaric Treatment & Training Services Limited. Staff understood their role in achieving the vision for the service and there was a pathway to monitor progress towards delivering goals. Staff told us they received an annual appraisal, this was confirmed by the records we reviewed. Records also confirmed that there were regular, staff meetings. Staff reported that they could be involved in developing the service through these meetings.

There was a strong focus on patient safety. Appraisal for Accreditation and Membership by the British Hyperbaric Association (BHA) was undertaken in February 2015.  Maintenance records indicated staff carried out safety checks on a daily, weekly and monthly basis, for example, the oxygen and carbon dioxide levels within the chamber, was checked daily.  However, we found the resuscitation equipment inside the chamber such as the medicine and airway bag were only checked on a weekly basis.  

Updated 25 May 2016

Murrayfield Hyperbaric Treatment & Training Services Limited was established in 1993; the centre has been providing a service at the current location for 12 years and is privately owned and managed by the technical and research director.

The hyperbaric medicine unit is located within the ground of the grounds of an independent private hospital. The unit provides hyperbaric (high-pressure) oxygen therapy for a range of conditions and is available to NHS and private patients of all ages and to Police, Fire Service and Military personnel.

The service is available to adult patients 24 hours per day 365 days per year. The chamber is a category 1 unit, as defined by the Cox report categories (The Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Cox report 1994) which meant facilities should be capable of receiving patients in any diagnostic category, who may need advanced life support either immediately or during hyperbaric oxygen treatment. The service provides two multi-place chambers (space for more than one person at a time); there was space for seven people in each chamber. Staff could lock in and lock out of the chamber. It was equipped for staff to look after critically ill patients if required.

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment involves breathing pure oxygen at higher than atmospheric pressures within an enclosed chamber. The atmospheric pressure varies, but can be the equivalent to being up to 40 feet under water. Hyperbaric therapy is and can be used to treat a variety of medical conditions. This includes decompression illness sustained after diving; the treatment of radiation tissue injury; treatment of necrotising wounds; carbon monoxide poisoning and gas embolism (air bubbles in the blood vessels). Treatment was available 24 hours a day all year round for patients requiring emergency treatment. Elective patients received treatment every weekday. Length of treatment depends on the specific condition suffered by the patient.

Consultants, the coast guard, emergency departments, other emergency services and GPs referred patients to the service. Most none emergency patients were treated through a contract with NHS England before elective treatment commenced. Emergency patients could be referred from anywhere within England dependent on availability, clinical need and transport requirements. The unit was commissioned to treat adults for emergency and elective work. There were no special reviews or investigations of the hospital by the CQC at any time previously. There had been no previous CQC inspections. The registered manager had worked at the service for 22 years.