Archived: Bupa Centre - Newcastle

Updated 29 April 2016

We inspected this service as part of our new comprehensive inspection programme under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2015, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Bupa Centre – Newcastle on 10 February 2016 as part of the independent doctor consultation service inspection pilot.

Our inspection team was led by a CQC Lead Inspector who was accompanied by a GP Specialist Advisor.

Before visiting, we reviewed a range of information we hold about the service and asked other organisations to share what they knew.

We informed NHS England and Northumberland Clinical Commissioning Group we were inspecting the service; however we did not receive any information of concern from them.

During our visit we:

• Spoke with a range of staff including a doctor, the health advisor and administrative staff.
• Reviewed records and documents.
• Reviewed four comment cards where patients and members of the public shared their views and experiences of the service.
• Toured the premises.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following five questions:

• Is it safe?
• Is it effective?
• Is it caring?
• Is it responsive to people’s needs?
• Is it well-led?

These questions therefore formed the framework for the areas we looked at during the inspection.

Updated 29 April 2016

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 10 February 2016 to ask the service the following key questions; Are services safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led?

Our findings were:

Are services safe?

We found that this service was providing safe services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

We found that this service was providing effective services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

We found that this service was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services responsive?

We found that this service was providing responsive services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services well-led?

We found that this service was providing well led services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

BUPA Centre-Newcastle is a private health screening centre. BUPA Centre-Newcastle also provides an occupational health service to local companies.

This service is registered with CQC under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 in respect of some, but not all, of the services it provides. There are some exemptions from regulation by CQC which relate to particular types of service and these are set out in Schedule 2 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. At BUPA Centre- Newcastle services are provided to patients under arrangements made by their employer and insurance companies with whom the servicer user holds a policy (other than a standard health insurance policy (These types of arrangements are exempt by law from CQC regulation. Therefore, at BUPA Centre-Newcastle we were only able to inspect the services which are not arranged for patients by their employers and an insurance companies with whom the patient holds a policy (other than a standard health insurance policy.

There is currently no registered manager for the service. BUPA are in the process of appointing a new manager, in the interim the manager from the Manchester office is overseeing the service. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

The core hours for the service are Monday to Friday 8.30am - 5pm.

However assessment clinics are only available Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

The doctor is available Mondays and Wednesdays and the sessions on a Tuesday are carried out by a health advisor. BUPA Centre-Newcastle has six salaried staff and one member of staff who was self-employed.

On the day of inspection there were no patients booked in. We received four Care Quality Commission (CQC) feedback forms from patients providing feedback about the service.

We found the service had met the regulations and had in place robust systems and protocols for staff to follow which kept patients safe.

Our key findings were:

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording incidents.
• Patients reported they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand.
• All consultation rooms were well organised and equipped, with good light and ventilation.
• There were systems in place to check all equipment had been serviced regularly.
• Clinicians regularly assessed patients according to appropriate guidance and standards.
• Staff maintained the necessary skills and competence to support the needs of patients.
• Staff were up to date with current guidelines and were led by a proactive management team.
• Risks to patients were well managed for example, there were effective systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection.
• Staff were kind, caring, competent and put patients at their ease.
• The provider was aware of, and complied with, the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

There were areas where the provider could make an improvement and should:

• Assess the suitability and cleanliness of the carpet throughout the patient areas at the centre.