The Care Quality Commission
  • Clinic
  • Slimming clinic

Archived: Harmony Medical Diet Clinic in Coventry

3rd Floor, Coventry Point, Market Way, Coventry, West Midlands, CV1 1EA 07973 641649

Provided and run by:
Harmony (Your Gentle Way To Slim) Limited

Important: This service is now registered at a different address - see new profile

All Inspections

4 October 2017

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 4 October 2017 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 effective care in accordance with the relevant regulations

Are services caring?

We found that this service was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations

Are services responsive?

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

Are services well-led?

We found that this service was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations

Background

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 service was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

The clinic provided slimming advice and prescribed medicines to support weight reduction. It was a private service. The service operates from a third floor consulting room in an office block in Coventry town centre. It is open from 10am to 4pm on Wednesdays. The clinic was run by one doctor, there were no support staff. The registered manager was a doctor but did not work regularly within the business. 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 a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the service is run. The provider runs two further clinics in Coventry and London. The registered manager provides supervision and support to the doctor who provides the service.

We collected feedback about the service from 11 patients through CQC comment cards and speaking to patients during the inspection. Patients said they received good advice, the doctor was knowledgeable and professional and they felt supported to lose weight.

Our key findings were:

  • Patients were provided with a range of information on diet, exercise and any medicines that were prescribed.
  • Feedback from patients was very positive about the care they received.
  • The service was flexible to fit in with patient choice
  • The doctor was knowledgeable about strategies to improve weight loss and had produced information for patients to support healthy diets.
  • The doctor had systems in place to monitor the clinical efficacy of the service provided.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements and should:

  • Review and risk assess the appropriateness of having a family member of the patient as a translator.
  • Review the necessity for chaperoning at the service and consider how this may be provided within this service.
  • Only supply unlicensed medicines against valid special clinical needs of an individual patient where there is no suitable licensed medicine available.

23 January 2013

During a routine inspection

During our visit we spoke with the Doctor and six people who used the service. People told us they were happy with the treatment they received. We looked at a variety of information sheets available to patients in the doctor's consultation room. This included information leaflets to accompany the appetite suppressant medications used at the clinic, a price list, and information and advice on diet.

During our visit we observed the doctor being friendly, professional and respectful towards people. One person said, "He's lovely and very informative, he explains everthing to you."

All of the people we spoke with said they had no concerns or complaints they wished to raise about the service, but knew how to do so if they needed to. They said they had the doctor's telephone number and could contact him at any time if there was anything they needed to discuss or clarify.

The doctor told us he was registered and licensed with the General Medical Council (GMC). He said he did not receive clinical audit or peer review (supervision and appraisal) at the time of our visit. Following a recent CQC inspection at another clinic we saw evidence to confirm he had begun arranging appraisals.

13 September 2012

During a routine inspection

As part of this review we requested and received a provider compliance assessment and were also sent 62 satisfaction surveys for Harmony Medical Diet Clinic. These surveys cover all three locations and span from 2009 - 2011. All responses recorded on the surveys seen were very positive and indicated that people were satisfied with the clinic, medication and diet provided. It is recorded that people are given all information and had in depth explanations of their personal plans.

Five people made additional comments on the surveys seen, including "I was able to ask lots of questions and the Doctor explained fully what steps I had to take to achieve the appropriate weight loss" and " I was surprised at the depth into which the Doctor went to explain and the information given".