We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 9 January 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.

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.

The service delivers the only NHS Homeopathic Service in the South West of England. The team of Medical Homeopathic Doctors are all members of the Faculty of Homeopathy. This is the registering body for statutorily regulated healthcare professionals who use Homeopathy in their clinical practice. The doctors are also fully trained in conventional and complementary medicine and consider all medical avenues for their patients, and apply their knowledge using an Integrative Medicine model.

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 PCIM services are provided to patients under arrangements made by themselves, or their employer. These types of arrangements are exempt by law from CQC regulation. Therefore, at Portland Centre for Integrative Medicine (PCIM), we were only able to inspect the services which are arranged for patients by the NHS.

The clinical lead, Dr Elizabeth Thompson, 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.

As part of our inspection we also asked for Care Quality Commission comment cards to be completed by patients prior to our inspection. We received feedback about the service from 18 patients. All of the feedback was positive and patients stating they received a high level of service and were treated with care and consideration. All of the respondents commented positively about their experiences and that they would recommend the service to others.

Our key findings were:

• There was a transparent approach to safety with demonstrably effective systems in place for reporting and recording incidents.
• 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 was available and easy to understand.
• The consultation room was well organised and equipped, with good light and ventilation.
• Clinicians regularly assessed patients according to appropriate guidance such as those issued by the Faculty of Homeopathy.
• The staff team maintained the necessary skills and competence to support the needs of patients.
• The staff team 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.
• The provider was aware of, and complied with, the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

There was an area where the provider could make improvements and should:

Review the availability of information so that patients are clear how to make a complaint.