The Care Quality Commission
  • Doctor
  • Independent doctor

Archived: Shropshire Skin Clinic

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

The Lodge, Farley Road, Much Wenlock, Shropshire, TF13 6NB (01743) 590010

Provided and run by:
Stephen Murdoch

All Inspections

20 February 2020

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Shropshire Skin Clinic as part of our inspection programme and to provide the service with a rating. 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.

Shropshire Skin Clinic is based in Much Wenlock, Shropshire and provides a dermatology service to NHS patients within Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire and Powys. The Clinic provides services from The Lodge, Farley Road, Much Wenlock, Shropshire TF13 6NB and also has another registered location known as St Michaels Clinic in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

The 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 and of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Shropshire Skin Clinic provides a limited range of non-surgical cosmetic interventions, for example botulinum toxin injections which are not within CQC scope of registration. Therefore, we did not inspect or report on these services.

As a provider of Independent Healthcare, the service is able to offer a private dermatological service to patients within those areas offered to the NHS and beyond those geographical boundaries.

The service is managed from the provider’s main site at St Michael’s Skin Clinic, in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. The directors of the company are Dr Stephen Murdoch and Mrs Alison Murdoch.

Dr Stephen Murdoch 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.

In preparation for the inspection, the service had been sent comment cards and a collection box from CQC and had encouraged patients to fill these in prior to the inspection. We received a total of 14 completed comment cards which, included patients who had received diagnosis or treatment. Following the inspection and with the consent of patients, we also telephoned and spoke with two patients and a close relative that had accompanied their family member at the clinic for diagnosis and treatment. Feedback from comment cards and telephone discussions were very complimentary about the service and the care and treatment received. Patients spoke highly of the service and described staff as professional, attentive, friendly, caring, thoughtful and efficient.

Our key findings were :

  • The service had clearly defined processes and systems in place to keep people safe and safeguarded from abuse.
  • There was an open and transparent approach to safety and a system in place for recording, reporting and learning from significant events, incidents and complaints.
  • There were effective arrangements in place for monitoring and managing risk.
  • Staff had received essential training in safe working practices.
  • The provider had effective recruitment procedures in place to ensure staff were suitable for their role.
  • Patients received effective care that met their needs, kept them safe and protected them from avoidable harm.
  • The premises were clean, well maintained and well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
  • Patients were provided with detailed information about any proposed treatment and costs where applicable, which enabled them to make an informed decision.
  • Patients were offered convenient, timely and flexible appointments.
  • Patients told us staff involved them in their care and treatment and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
  • Written arrangements were in place between the service and the local hospital for transferring the care of patients with a cancer diagnosis.
  • The service reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care provided.
  • There were clear responsibilities, roles and systems for accountability to support good governance and management that assured the delivery of high-quality care and treatment.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

  • Consider developing a lone working policy and risk assessment.
  • Ensure safety checks carried out on the defibrillator also include checks on expiry dates of defibrillator pads.
  • Improve the monitoring of vaccine fridge temperature checks.
  • Develop a structured programme of structured quality improvement activity.


Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGPChief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care

3 January 2014

During a routine inspection

Shropshire Skin Clinic was a small clinic providing a range of dermatology and aesthetic treatments and procedures to NHS and private patients. All of the people we spoke with were very happy with the service they received. One patient told us that they: "Always felt at ease" and that the staff were: "Very kind". A recent customer satisfaction survey showed that there were high levels of satisfaction with the care and treatment received.

People told us that they were always given detailed information about treatments. People we spoke with particularly valued the written information they received in addition to the verbal detail. People told us that they felt they had sufficient information to give valid consent to any treatment or procedure.

People told us that the clinic was always clean and tidy. We saw that care was being delivered in clean hygienic premises. There was ground floor access for people with limited mobility.

Staff told us that Shropshire Skin Clinic was a good place to work and that staff morale was high. We found that staff had good access to training, received annual appraisals and had regular supervision. We found that there were safe recruitment and selection processes in place.

We found that the proprietors had undertaken a range of audits to ensure that good practice was being followed. Staff were able to clearly explain their roles and responsibilities.

15 February 2013

During a routine inspection

People told us they were 'Very' satisfied with the care and treatment they received. They told us they were well informed about the risks and benefits of their treatment and the costs involved. One person said, 'It's always such a pleasurable experience when I go to them'. Another person said, 'I have nothing but praise for them. They have improved my life no end'.

People told us they were always made welcome and were treated with dignity and respect. They said they felt involved in their treatment and their views were listened to and they were provided with the opportunity to ask questions during their consultation.

People told us they liked the location of the premises and the small discreet service offered. The premises were fit for purpose, well maintained and easily accessible. Appropriate checks had been carried out to ensure the safety of both patients and staff. People told us they always found the clinic clean and tidy.

People described staff as 'Absolutely lovely' and 'Very capable'. They considered staff were knowledgeable of procedures and were competent to safely and effectively carry out their work. Staff received appropriate and continuous professional development to maintain and develop their skills and knowledge.

People told us they would feel confident in raising concerns and complaints directly with the staff and considered that they would be listened to. They said they had never had cause to complain.

22 December 2011

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We visited Shropshire Skin Clinic, Much Wenlock, on 22 December 2011. We met with staff who worked at the clinic and both partners on 16 and 22 December 2011. Prior to our visit we had telephone discussions with nine people who had received services in order to gather their views of the service provided.

Everyone we contacted spoke very positively about their experiences. People told us,

'My experiences have always been excellent'.

'I can't praise them enough'.

One person told us that the atmosphere was, 'very homely and very friendly'.

People told us that they felt safe and confident with the treatments that they received and described the consultant and all of the staff as being very professional. Care was described as being very good and people's overall experience was described as 'fantastic'.

People felt involved and consulted in relation to how they received their treatment and we were told that treatment was responsive to people's individual needs. People felt that they had received good written information prior to their sessions that told them all about the treatments that they were to receive. We saw examples of this information during our review. People told us that they were 'well informed'.

People told us that they received initial assessments that were described as being, 'in depth' and 'lengthy'. People were confident that they were receiving the most appropriate treatments for their conditions. The consultant told us that, where agreed with the patients, he contacted the person's GP. People were also very positive about their follow up treatment and after care support.

Everyone we spoke with told us that they had their views and experiences taken into account. Most people had completed a quality assurance questionnaire but everyone considered that their views and wishes had been listened to and acted upon during each and every visit.

The clinic had a number of systems in place to ensure that they monitored and reviewed the quality and safety of the service that they provided. Staff were well trained and well supported to provide 'excellent' care and support.