Updated 25 August 2022
Laser and Light Ltd is located at 1 Church Gate Mews, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE11 1TZ and is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide the regulated activities of diagnostic and screening procedures, surgical procedures and treatment of disease, disorder or injury.
Laser and Light Ltd is a service which provides a range of cosmetic treatments which are mostly not covered by CQC registration. The CQC regulated activities only incorporate private treatment for patients in relation to skin conditions such as acne, mole or skin tag removal, and injectable proteins (Botulinum toxin) for the treatment of migraines or hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating). No services covered by CQC regulated activities are provided for any individual under 18 years of age.
There is considerably higher activity levels for the non-regulated activities undertaken by the service. For example, in the last 12 months during which the service was in operation, they estimated they had only seen approximately 20-30 patients who were treated as part of a CQC regulated activity.
The service is delivered from a small ground floor property consisting of two consulting/treatment rooms, a reception, toilet and utility area. The property is accessible to wheelchair users, although there is no fully accessible toilet facility. There is no parking due the location in a busy shopping precinct, but there is parking nearby in town centre car parks.
The service is led by a doctor (who is also a laser eye surgeon, specialised in ophthalmology and aesthetic medicine), supported by a nurse, two laser therapists and a beauty therapist. The therapists also provided reception cover. There are two administrators based off site in office accommodation close to the service.
There is a named Registered Manager as part of CQC requirements. The Registered Manager is a qualified nurse who provides some holiday cover for the service, but also meets monthly with the doctor to review any issues relating to the service including compliance with CQC regulations. The Registered Manager is not based on site but can be accessed by the team if required by telephone or email.
Consultations are by prior arrangement via telephone or online via email. The service is open from 9am to 5.30pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and 9am to 3pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The service for regulated activities had re-opened in June 2022 following several months of dormancy during the pandemic. This aspect of the service had been dormant from 8 July 2021 until 14 June 2022. This meant that the CQC were delayed in returning to review the special measures status of the service as this would normally take place within six months of the previous report’s publication.
How we inspected this service
We inspected Laser and Light Ltd on 22 July 2022 but carried out some interviews remotely earlier in the same week. Before visiting we reviewed the information we hold about the service, and also asked the service to submit a range of supporting evidence electronically. This included information about policies and risk assessments, staff members and audits. Laser and Light Ltd also provided additional information on the site visit and via email following the inspection.
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.