We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 13 February 2018 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 care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

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

Are services well-led?

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

Background

We carried out this inspection 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 service was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Eudelo (an abbreviation of European Dermatology London) is an independent provider of medical services. The service provides medical dermatology, and also aesthetic procedures which are not regulated by the CQC. Services are provided from 63 Bondway, Vauxhall, London, SW8 1SJ in the London borough of Lambeth. All of the services provided are private and are therefore fee paying, no NHS services are provided at Eudelo.

The service is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 7pm and Saturday 9am to 4pm. The service has practitioners on call out of hours in the event that existing patients need to speak to clinicians, but does not offer elective care outside of these hours.

The premise is located on the lower ground floor. The property is leased by the provider and the premises consist of a patient reception area, and eight consulting rooms.

The service is operated by two Directors, one of whom is the manager of the service and the other a Dermatologist who is also Medical Director. The service also employs three further dermatologists, two aesthetic doctors, five medical aestheticians, a clinic manager, a treatment co-ordinator, four receptionists and an administrator.

The Director who manages the service is the registered manager. 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 service is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide the regulated activity of treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

As part of our inspection we asked for CQC comment cards to be completed by patients prior to our inspection. We received 30 comment cards which were all extremely positive about the standard of care received, across the services offered. Comments included that staff, were kind, caring, polite, friendly, helpful and patients said they were treated with dignity and respect. Comments about the service included that the clinic was clean and hygienic. We spoke with two patients during the inspection who said they were very satisfied with the care they received and told us that appointments ran on time that they were not rushed, that they were involved in their care and treatment and that the provider provided an excellent level of service.

Our key findings were:

• The service had systems in place to manage significant events.
• Risks to patients were always assessed and managed, the service held emergency medicines and equipment.
• Policies and procedures were in place to govern all relevant areas.
• The service had an infection control policy and had carried out an audit. The rooms and all equipment were clean, although clinicians did not record when they were cleaning specific clinical equipment before and after use.
• Clinicians assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance.
• The service had systems in place to monitor operative outcomes.
• Patients said 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.
• Patients were provided with information relating to their condition and where relevant how to manage their condition at home.
• The service had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• The clinic sought feedback from patients, which showed that a large majority of patients were satisfied with the service they had received.
• The clinic was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements and should:

• Consider reviewing the care provided by individual clinicians in addition to the outcome based audits that are already in place.
• Consider implementing a checklist for the cleaning of clinical equipment.
• Ensure that identification is verified for patients, parents and carers attending the service.