20 October 2015
During a routine inspection
Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Ealing Hospital Accident and Emergency Department (Ealing Urgent Care Centre) on 20 October 2015. The provider operates an out of hours service from the same location which was not inspected during this visit. The provider is no longer providing this service.
Our key findings were as follows:
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Patients said their privacy and dignity was maintained, staff spoke with them in appropriate ways and they were involved in decisions about their care and treatment.
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There were systems in place for reporting and recording significant events. However, there was limited evidence to show lessons learned were shared to make sure action was taken to improve safety in the centre.
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The provider had systems in place for when there were unintended or unexpected safety incidents which included patients being provided with reasonable support, truthful information, a verbal and written apology. Patients were told about any actions to improve processes to prevent the same thing happening again.
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The centre had clearly defined and embedded systems, processes and practices in place to keep patients safe and safeguarded from abuse.
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Suitable arrangements were in place for infection control, although there was no process to review the cleaning.
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Although risks to patients were assessed, the systems and processes to address these risks were not always implemented well enough to ensure patients were kept safe. For example in relation to medicines management and calibration of equipment.
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Systems were in place to ensure clinical staff were up to date with both National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines and local guidelines. Staff assessed needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance.
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Audits were used to ensure quality improvement.
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Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment, new staff completed an induction, all staff had access to required training and all staff received an annual appraisal.
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The provider had an understanding of the performance of the service and used a range of monitoring information to ensure levels of care and treatment were appropriate.
Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice