The Cliffs Chiropractic Clinic

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• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We scored the service as 3. The evidence showed a good standard. The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

We have not awarded this service a score for Caring.

Find out about when we will not publish a key question score and what we look at when we assess Caring.

The evidence showed a good standard. The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

Staff told us they treated patients with compassion and kindness, and ensured their privacy and dignity were respected. They considered individual needs of patients. This was supported by patients, 1 patient commented, “it’s like a family, everyone’s always so welcoming and friendly”. The service provided dressing gowns to patients for the duration of their appointment if they chose to wear one.

Staff said chaperones were provided when required for x-ray investigations. Chaperones were positioned behind the screen to protect them from unnecessary radiation exposure. However, we did not see posters or signs to communicate this with patients.

Staff respected all patients and helped maintain their dignity. Staff provided examples and said they did this by asking if patients needed additional privacy when changing clothing or making sure doors were closed when discussing sensitive patient information.

Staff provided discreet and responsive care to patients. Patients told us time was taken by staff to interact with them and those close to them in a respectful and considerate manner.

We observed the clinic had processes and systems in place to protect privacy and protect patient belongings

The service had a patient confidentiality policy. However, this had not been reviewed since 2019. This was escalated to the provider and they said this would be reviewed as soon as possible. We were not provided with any evidence that this had been amended.

The evidence showed a good standard. The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

Staff told us they provided emotional support to patients, families and carers to minimise distress. They understood and adapted to personal, cultural and religious needs. For example, staff told us they were able to use an online tool if they need to translate a sentence for a patient.

Staff said patients were supported if English was not their first language.

Staff said they provided help, emotional support, and advice to patients and those close to them when needed. For example, 1 patient told us they had been supported to understand the impact of personal stress on physical health and how this insight could be used to improve their wellbeing.

The evidence showed a good standard. The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

Staff booked in patients' appointments by phone and costs of sessions were discussed at this point. Patients we spoke to said the process of what would happen and why was explained very clearly.

Staff said they understood the emotional and social impact of patients’ care, treatment and condition. Patients confirmed they were consistently offered opportunities to provide feedback on their care throughout appointments and all interaction with the provider. Feedback was consistently positive.

The Chiropractic clinic feedback questionnaires incorporated the diagnostic imaging service; however, results could not be separated to identify diagnostic imaging specific responses. Responses were largely positive.

Patients said the service had been very supportive and communicated clearly with them. For example, once x-ray investigations were completed, patients were shown back to the changing rooms to get dressed and were informed of what to expect next. This included information on booking more appointments if required.

The evidence showed a good standard. The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

Staff and leaders told us the service rarely needed emergency services. Staff told us about 1 incident where staff needed to call emergency services for a patient. Staff stayed with the patient until an ambulance arrived and took the patient to the nearest hospital.

Leaders told us staff understood the emotional and social impact of care, treatment and conditions of patients and those close to them. A clinic dog was present on certain days that helped provide a calming experience for anxious patients.

Staff provided support to patients experiencing stress during appointments, and coping strategies were offered to assist with mental health concerns.

The evidence showed a good standard. The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

Staff told us they felt well-supported by management. Staff told us training and learning were shared across the team. Staff said they felt management was approachable and referred to the team as family.

Staff said they had flexible working hours available, most clinic rooms had windows offered natural light and they were able to take regular breaks. Desks and chairs were in good condition to support posture and safety at work.