Dermalogix Aesthetics

This service is rated as Good overall.

This is the first inspection for the service.

The key questions are rated as:

Are services safe? – Requires improvement

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? – Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dermalogix Aesthetics as part of our inspection programme.

This was the first rated inspection for the service since its registration in 2022.

Dermalogix Aesthetics is registered under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 to provide the regulated activities:

• Surgical procedures

• Treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

Services provided which fall under the scope of registration include prescription only medicines for slimming, treatments for hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating), bruxism (teeth grinding) and PDO thread lifts (a face lift procedure carried out under local anaesthesia using dissolvable sutures).

This service is registered with 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 regulated activities and services and these are set out in Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Dermalogix Aesthetics provides a range of non-surgical cosmetic interventions, for example dermal fillers and skin treatments, which are not within CQC scope of registration. Therefore, we did not inspect or report on these services.

The owner 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.

Our key findings were:

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and systems in place for reporting and recording incidents and complaints.
• Patients received effective care and treatment that met their needs.
• Staff were appropriately trained to carry out their roles.
• Staff treated patients with compassion, respect and kindness and involved them in decisions about their care.
• There were safe systems around infection control, equipment, and storage of medicines.

The areas where the provider must make improvements as they are in breach of regulations are:

• We could not confirm from the available records whether serious side effects of some unlicensed medicines, including allergic reaction and pancreatitis, had been fully discussed with patients. There was insufficient evidence to establish whether patients were always told when to inform their GP or seek emergency assistance.

• The service did not have systems in place to ensure that an adult accompanying a child had parental authority.

• The service had no systems in place to assure themselves risk assessments completed by the landlord, as part of a tenancy agreement, had been completed and findings acted upon, such as obtaining proof of the safety of fire and electrical systems.

(Please see the specific details on action required at the end of this report).

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Only supply unlicensed medicines against valid special clinical needs of an individual patient where there is no suitable licensed medicine available.
• Be able to demonstrate that patients are asked about changes in their health conditions or medications at each consultation.
• Consider ways in which to demonstrate governance of prescribing and clinical supervision to ensure ongoing best practice.
• Consider the likelihood of need for chaperones, and therefore chaperone training.
• Consider how to tailor the Medical Emergencies Policy to better reflect the individual service, in particular how to raise the alarm and care for a patient whilst lone working.

Dr Sean O’Kelly BSc MB ChB MSc DCH FRCA

Chief Inspector of Hospitals and Interim Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services