The Care Quality Commission
  • Ambulance service

Archived: British Red Cross Warmley

Bradbury House, Caxton Business Park, 83 Tower Road North, Warmley, Bristol, BS30 8XP (0117) 301 2600

Provided and run by:
British Red Cross Society

All Inspections

24 October 2013

During a routine inspection

We visited the branch headquarters and spoke with staff and managers, including the registered manager. We also spoke with three volunteer ambulance care assistants by telephone. We inspected ambulance vehicles and equipment and looked at systems in place to ensure that they were safely maintained and fit for purpose. We looked at staff training records and audit records.

Because of the transient nature of the service, we were unable to speak with patients. Although the service had systems in place to capture feedback from patients, they had not yielded any recent feedback. We therefore spoke with three events organisers who had used the service. They all spoke highly of the service. One organisation told us "They are absolutely first class.They are efficient, reliable, pleasant and easy to deal with." Another event organiser told us "They are incredibly professional, organised and knowledgeable about safety." A third organisation told us "I can't praise them enough. The crews are supportive, tolerant and understanding of our specialist needs."

Ambulances were appropriately designed, well maintained, clean and well equipped. There were robust systems in place to ensure their safety, road worthiness and readiness.

Volunteers told us they were well supported with training and we saw records to support this. They understood the principles of equality and diversity and were able to describe the practical steps they took to preserve people's privacy and dignity.

17 October 2012

During a routine inspection

We visited the branch headquarters and spoke with employed staff and managers, including the registered manager. We also spoke with one volunteer. We subsequently spoke with another volunteer by telephone. We looked at care records and staff records. We also reviewed the systems in place monitor quality and safety. Because of the transient nature of this service we were not able to speak with people who used the service. We contacted the local NHS ambulance service and asked for feedback on the quality of service provided. They confirmed that they were happy with the quality of service provided by British Red Cross volunteers.

We found that staff had a good understanding of the requirement to gain and record people's consent for care or treatment and regular audit demonstrated compliance in this area.

We looked at patient report forms. We saw that people's needs had been appropriately assessed and any treatment/ care provided was clearly documented. Staff were well informed about their responsibilities to safeguard vulnerable adults and children and knew how to report concerns.

Ambulance vehicles were regularly cleaned and there were effective systems and training in place to prevent the spread of infection.

There was evidence of robust vetting procedures to ensure that people were not cared for by unsuitable individuals. There were effective systems in place to monitor quality and safety, including regular audit.