Archived: Bijoux Medi-Spa

Updated 28 November 2019

Bijoux Medi-Spa is a private clinic that carries out aesthetic treatments and medical procedures for people over the age of eighteen. The clinic is registered to provide diagnosis and treatment of skin conditions and minor surgical procedures which includes small excisions and skin shaves for the removal of lesions on the face and body and Microsclerotherapy, which is a treatment for small veins on the legs. The clinic also provides non-surgical cosmetic treatments which are not within the scope of registration, so we did not inspect this area of the service. Three staff at the clinic are involved in CQC regulated activities, which includes the doctor.

The clinic is located in a converted residential and business use property with street level access into a reception and waiting area. The building is not fully accessible to wheelchair users and does not have accessible facilities. There are patient toilets and baby changing facilities available. The premises consist of a patient waiting room and reception area, two consultation rooms, a massage therapy room, kitchen space and storage area.

Services are available to any fee-paying patient. The service is open between 10am and 5.30pm on Monday and 10am and 6.30pm Tuesday to Friday. The service is open on Saturday between 10am and 2pm. Services are available to people on a pre-bookable appointment basis.

Medical procedures are provided by a sole medical doctor. The doctor is supported by a Service Manager and administrative support is provided by two reception staff members who work part time. The doctor is required to register with a professional body and was registered with a licence to practice.

How we inspected this service

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Bijoux Medi-Spa on 19 September 2019. Our inspection team was led by a CQC Lead Inspector. The other member of the inspection team was a GP specialist advisor.

Before visiting, we reviewed the information we hold about the service. During our visit we:

• Spoke with the clinician and administrative staff.
• Reviewed a sample of the personal care or treatment records of patients.
• Reviewed service policies, procedures and other relevant documentation.
• Inspected the premises and equipment used by the service.
• Reviewed comment cards where patients shared their views and experiences of the service.

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 28 November 2019

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Bijoux Medi Spa as part of our inspection programme. We had previously inspected this service as part of our unrated programme of independent health inspections. At our last inspection undertaken on 18 July 2018 we found that the service was in breach of regulation 12 (safe care and treatment) and regulation 17 (good governance) and regulation 18 (staffing) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. At that inspection we found that the provider had not adequately mitigated risks associated with infection control, checking medical equipment, not all staff had completed the requisite training, and there was a lack of quality improvement activity. There was a lack of oversight in key areas of risk and safety and there was no system to oversee governance and risk management. There were no ongoing quality assurance activities in place to allow the practice to assure themselves that the standards of care and treatment for regulated activities delivered, were being consistently met in line with current legislation and guidance. The provider sent us their action plan in November 2018 telling us about their plans to address the concerns identified at our inspection in July 2018. At this inspection we found that all of these concerns had been addressed and resolved.

The service manager for 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.

Twenty-two patients provided wholly positive feedback to CQC about the service. Patients said that the treatment provided was excellent and met their needs.

Our key findings were:

• The provider had systems in place in relation to safeguarding.
• We found evidence of improvement in monitoring and mitigating risks relating to the safety of service users.
• The service reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was delivered according to evidence based guidelines.
• Appropriate emergency equipment was available on site. Staff we spoke with knew what they would do if a patient presented with the symptoms of sepsis.
• There were systems in place to report and discuss significant events.
• Medicines were appropriately managed and there were systems in place to respond to safety alerts.
• Care and treatment provided was effective and met patient needs.
• Feedback from patients was positive about access to treatment and the care provided and there was a system for managing complaints.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• Governance arrangements had improved. The provider had effective systems in place to oversee risk.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Consider ways to better accommodate patients with accessibility needs.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGPChief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care