BPAS Reading

Updated 20 April 2023

BPAS Reading provides a range of termination of pregnancy services including; surgical terminations up to 13 weeks and 6 days and medical terminations up to 10 weeks. Women can also access; pregnancy testing, counselling, aftercare, sexually transmitted infection testing, contraceptive advice and contraception supply.

The service was registered to provide;

• Treatment of disease, disorder and injury

• Surgical procedures

• Diagnostic and screening procedures

• Termination of pregnancies

• Family planning

In the 12 months prior to inspection, the service completed; 838 terminations, 515 medical and 323 surgical. Of those, 29 were for clients under the age of 18 years old. Unit staff completed 22 safeguarding referrals.

We last inspected this service in June 2016. There were no requirement notices or enforcement actions that resulted from this inspection. There were two ‘should’ recommendations that are were checked at this inspection. At the 2016 inspection, we did not rate the service, as at the time Care Quality Commission did not have the methodology to do so. This is the first inspection where the service will be rated.

Updated 20 April 2023

We rated this location as requires improvement because:

• Mandatory training completion rates for patient safety was below the provider target.
• Storage of controlled drugs did not meet national guidance.
• Disposal of pregnancy remains was not respectful.
• Women did not receive treatment within the timeframes as stated in national guidance.

However:

• Staff understood how to protect women from abuse, and managed safety well. The service controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to women, acted on them and kept good care records. The service managed incidents well and learned lessons from them.
• Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of women.
• Staff treated women with compassion and kindness and respected their privacy and dignity. They provided emotional support to women and their families.
• The service planned care to meet the needs of local women, took account of women’s individual needs, and made it easy for women to give feedback.
• Staff understood the service’s vision and values. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. The service engaged well with women and the community to plan and manage services and all staff were committed to improving services.

Updated 20 April 2023