Head Office & Preston Cataract Surgical Centre

Updated 27 January 2023

Head Office & Preston Cataract Surgical Centre is operated by Community Health and Eyecare Limited. It is an independent health provider delivering cataract surgery and ophthalmic consultations. The service uses YAG (yttrium aluminium garnet) laser treatment as part of some cataract surgery as a non-invasive approach to improving vision and for diagnostics.

Eye care and treatment is provided for both NHS patients under a contract with an integrated care board (ICB). This is one of several ICB areas in which the provider delivers care across England. The service occasionally delivers care to private patients.

The centre is registered to provide the following regulated activities:

• Surgical procedures
• Treatment of disease, disorder, or injury
• Diagnostic and screening procedures

Clinical services are delivered from a purpose-built unit located on a business park that is co-located with the provider’s head office. There are dedicated areas for outpatient consultations, diagnostic imaging, and surgery. Outpatient services operate four days per week, diagnostic services operate three days per week and surgical theatre procedures are offered two days per week. Diagnostic laser treatment is offered one or two days per week.

The provider registered this location in February 2021, and we have not previously inspected it.

The previous registered manager had left their post and a senior member of the team had submitted their application to CQC to fill this role.

Between April 2022 and September 2022, 3549 patients received care in the service, of which 1987 patients were first appointments and 1560 patients received a follow-up. The service reported an average of 538 monthly referrals across all types of clinical care, of which 23% were for cataract surgery.

Where our findings on outpatients – for example, management arrangements – also apply to other services, we do not repeat the information but cross-refer to the surgery service.

Updated 27 January 2023

We have not previously inspected this service. We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. The service controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. They managed medicines well. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them.
• Staff provided good care and treatment and managed pain well. The senior team monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, supported them to make decisions about their care, and had access to good information.
• Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions.
• The service planned care to meet the needs of people, took account of patients’ individual needs, and made it easy for people to give feedback. People could access the service when they needed it and the senior team were proactive in working to reduce waiting times.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged with patients and the community to plan and manage services and all staff were committed to improving services continually.

Updated 27 January 2023

We have not previously inspected this service. We rated it as good because it was safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well led. Please see our main summary.

Where arrangements were the same between core services, we have reported findings in the surgery section.

Updated 27 January 2023

We have not previously inspected this service. We rated it as good because it was safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well led. Please see our main summary.