We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 6 June 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 safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

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

Are services responsive?

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

Are services well-led?

We found that this service was providing safe 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 practice was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

The Clinic MK is a private doctor’s service. It is situated close to the entrance of Milton Keynes train station. The service offers consultations, examinations and treatment in general medicine. The Clinic MK provides a ‘drop in service’ as well as receiving referrals from GP’s and local businesses.  The Clinic MK is run by an independent GP, supported by a service manager and a receptionist. Consultations are mainly undertaken by the doctor and other clinicians on an as needed basis dependant on patient demand.

The Clinic MK is open for appointments Monday to Friday from 8.00am till 8pm and on Saturday from 9.00am till 3pm. Patients make appointments with the practice directly in person, by telephone or on line through the clinic’s website.

The Clinic MK is not required to offer an out of hours service. Patients who need medical assistance out of normal operating hours are requested to seek advice from alternative services such as the NHS 111 telephone service or accident and emergency.

As part of our inspection we reviewed comment cards where patients and members of the public shared their views and experiences of the service. There were 25 completed CQC comment cards; patients commented that they were satisfied with the care provided by the practice. Staff were described as friendly, kind, caring and professional.

Our key findings were:

• The clinic was providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.
• There were systems in place for the overall management of significant events and incidents. Risks to patients were assessed and managed.
• Systems were in place to monitor complaints.
• Staff treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect. All staff had received equality and diversity training.
• There was a process to ensure that care and treatment delivered were in accordance with evidence-based guidelines.
• We found that appraisal was provided on an informal basis, one of the employees had last had their appraisal over two years ago. The clinic informed us that they were going to formalise appraisals.
• Staff demonstrated that they understood their responsibilities and all had received training on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults relevant to their role.
• Comment cards and satisfaction surveys highlighted that patients appreciated the care provided by the doctors and staff were described as kind, caring and professional.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Consider reviewing arrangements for interpretation services.
• Ensure that appraisals are formalised.

We spoke with four people that had used the service at The Clinic MK. They all told us that they were happy with the advice and treatment they had received and that the staff were very professional. One person said that they “couldn’t fault it” another person told us “the service was great, I am more than happy. Everyone was polite and professional”.

We found that medicines were managed safely, and that emergency equipment was in good working order.

We found that staff had received training and refresher training which ensured their knowledge was constantly updated.

We found the service to be safe, effective and well managed.

The Clinic MK is a private doctor’s service. It is situated close to the entrance of Milton Keynes train station. The service offers consultations, examinations and treatment in general medicine. The Clinic MK provides a ‘drop in service’ as well as receiving referrals from GP’s and local businesses.

We spoke to people who had used the service at the Clinic MK and they told us that they were very pleased with the advice and treatment they had received. One person had visited the Clinic MK on a few occasions and they told us that the doctor had provided them with all the facts which helped them to decide upon a treatment option.

Another person told us that they were pleased with the choice and promptness of appointment times that were available. All three people we spoke with told us that the staff were very friendly and welcoming and that they would use the service again.

On this occasion we were not able to speak to anyone attending the clinic for treatment.