Medic 1 Direct ltd

Updated 23 March 2020

Medic 1 Direct Ltd is operated by Medic 1 Direct Ltd. Medic 1 Direct Ltd provides first aid for the public and staff at events across the country including transporting patients to emergency departments. The service has had a registered manager in post since the service started in 2012. The registered manager was also the Clinical Director of the organisation. It is an independent ambulance service with its headquarters in Wales. It has a non-operational base in Canterbury, Kent. There were no staff, vehicles, equipment or records permanently at this base. This was the second CQC inspection for Medic 1 Direct Ltd. The inspection took place on 16 January 2020. This is the first inspection to be rated.

Updated 23 March 2020

Medic 1 Direct Ltd is a private ambulance service operated by . The service provides first aid services for the public and staff at events across England including transporting patients to emergency departments.

This service is registered with the CQC under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 in respect of some, but not all, of the services it provides. There are some exemptions from regulation by CQC, which relate to particular types of service and these are set out in Schedule 2 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

Medic 1 Direct Ltd provides services to patients taking part in or attending a sport or cultural event. These types of arrangements are exempt by law from CQC regulation. Therefore, at Medic 1 Direct Ltd, we did not inspect the services provided to patients taking part in or attending a sport or cultural event. However, providers are required to register with CQC if they transport patients off the event site to the local hospital. Medic 1 Direct Ltd had transported four patients to hospital from an event site within 12 months prior to inspection.

We inspected this service using our comprehensive inspection methodology. The Care Quality Commission does not have any regulatory powers in Wales; therefore, this was a partial inspection of the service. The provider’s headquarters is in Wales but the regulated activity is carried out within England.

We inspected the provider’s location in Canterbury, Kent, which is a non-operational administrative base. We carried out the announced part of the inspection on 16 January 2020. There were three members of staff present at the inspection, the registered manager, a paramedic and the fleet manager. .

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we ask the same five questions of all services: are they safe, effective, caring, responsive to people's needs, and well-led?

Throughout the inspection, we took account of what people told us and how the provider understood and complied with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

We rated it as Good overall.

• Staff followed infection prevention and control procedures to reduce the spread of infection to patients.

• Staff completed an induction programme and extensive training in a range of clinical skills and theory to enable them to undertake their roles.

• Staff received support through supervision and appraisal.

• Staff had been trained and understood their responsibilities to report safeguarding concerns.

• The service managed patient safety incidents well. Staff recognised incidents and near misses and knew how to report them.

• There was a process to ensure staff understood the Mental Capacity Act (2005) and how to apply the principles in practice.

• The service carried out comprehensive risk assessments prior to each event and liaised with local services.

• Staff within the service had completed training to assist with meeting the needs of individuals including patients living with dementia and learning disabilities.

• The service encouraged feedback from patients.

• Staff felt supported by the managers of the service and said the managers were always available to discuss concerns.

• There were effective arrangements to manage risk. The risk register identified operational risks and described safeguards to manage those risks, it was regularly discussed and updated.

• There was an effective governance framework which provided a holistic understanding and assurance of safety, quality and patient experience.

  However, we also found the following issues that the service provider needs to improve:

• The service did not always record and formalise governance meetings. We were told that the meetings occurred but that documentation of them was poor.

Updated 23 March 2020

Medic 1 Direct Ltd. is a private ambulance service operated by Medic 1 Direct Ltd. The service provides first aid for the public and staff at events across England including transporting patients to emergency departments.

We rated the service as good for safe, effective, responsive and well led. We did not rate the caring domain due to limited evidence available for this service.