26 June 2019
During a routine inspection
This service is rated as Good overall. (Previous inspection 13 February 2018.)
The key questions are rated as:
Are services safe? – Good
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 Eudelo on 26 June 2019 as part of our current inspection programme. We previously inspected this service on 13 February 2018 using our previous methodology, where we did not apply ratings.
Eudelo (which is an abbreviation of European Dermatology London) is an independent provider of medical dermatology, and non-surgical cosmetic procedures not regulated by the CQC. It is based in the London Borough of Lambeth. Services are provided on a fee-paying basis.
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. Eudelo provides a range of non-surgical cosmetic interventions (known as aesthetic dermatology), for example smoothing wrinkles and facial hair removal. These interventions are not within CQC scope of registration. Therefore, we did not inspect or report on these services.
One of the organisation’s directors 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.
We received 32 completed CQC comment cards which were all extremely positive about the service:
- Patients commented that the staff were professional and caring, the environment was clean and comfortable, and that options were thoroughly and patiently explained.
- Almost all patients commented that they were extremely happy with the outcomes of their procedures and treatment.
- Many patients said that they felt they were not pressured into choosing unnecessary or inappropriate treatments.
- Some patients said the service and results achieved were superior to what they had experienced previously at other providers.
Our key findings were:
- The service provided care in a way that kept patients safe and protected them from avoidable harm.
- There was an open and transparent approach to safety and a system in place for recording, reporting and learning from significant events and incidents. The service had clear systems to manage risk so that safety incidents were less likely to happen. When incidents happened, the service learned from them and reviewed their processes to implement improvements.
- There were clearly defined and embedded systems, processes and practices to keep people safe and safeguarded from abuse, and for identifying and mitigating risks of health and safety.
- Patients received effective care and treatment that met their needs.
- The service organised and delivered services to meet patients’ needs. Patients said that they could access care and treatment in a timely way.
- The service reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was delivered according to evidence-based guidelines and best practice.
- Patients told us that all staff treated them with kindness and respect and that they felt involved in discussions about their treatment options.
- Patient satisfaction with the service was consistently high.
- Clinical staff had the appropriate skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
- The service took complaints and concerns seriously and responded to them appropriately to improve the quality of care.
We saw an example of outstanding practice:
- The service used an integrated range of comprehensive information technology systems to manage and share information in real time to support the delivery of care and treatment. This included an advanced digital patient management platform, a digital recall system and a laboratory results logging system. An electronic daily log was used to manage incidents, significant events and patient feedback, and this was accessible to all staff.
Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGPChief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care