Marches Ambulance Service

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

This is the first assessment for this service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people were safe and protected from avoidable harm.

Patient areas which included ambulances were clean well equipped, well maintained and fit for purpose. However, we found out of date consumable items such as airway equipment and dressings out of date on both ambulances. Staff assessed and managed risks to patients and themselves well. Staff understood how to protect patients from abuse and the service worked well with other agencies to do so. The service used systems and processes to safely prescribe, administer, record and store medicines. The service managed patient safety incidents well.

We have not awarded this service a score for Safe.

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

The service had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. They listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were learnt to continually identify and embed good practice.

The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

The service worked with people and healthcare partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety was managed or monitored. They made sure there was continuity of care, including when people moved between different services.

We looked at 1 patient record for a patient who had been transported. The record was clear and complete and was dated, timed, with a signature. The patient whose record we looked at had an agreed do not resuscitate order in place. Records showed this was shared with staff and then handed to a named member of staff at their new place of care. We saw information had been provided to staff about special needs, for example pre -existing conditions and safety risks.

All patient records were reviewed by a manager after each transfer to ensure they met required standards.

The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

The service worked with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and the best way to achieve that. They concentrated on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect. The service shared concerns quickly and appropriately.

The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

The service worked with people to understand and manage risks by thinking holistically. Staff provided care to meet people’s needs that was safe, supportive and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them.

The service provided suitably qualified and experienced staff who were able to manage risks such as a deterioration in the patient during their transfer. The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

The service did not always detect and control potential risks and out of date consumables on ambulances were seen on ambulances and may not support the safe delivery of care.

The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

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.

The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

The service assessed and managed the risk of infection. They detected and controlled the risk of it spreading and shared concerns with appropriate agencies promptly.

The main type of service delivered by Marches Ambulance Service was emergency or urgent care, please see information under the corresponding quality statement in the report for urgent or emergency care.

The service made sure that medicines and treatments were safe and met people’s needs, capacities and preferences.

Staff did not prescribe or manage medicines of patients who used the patient transport service. Patients retained their own medicines and staff assisted when required the patient of their representative to give their medicines to the new service. The main registered activity was urgent care service for further information about the service use of medicines please see information within the urgent and emergency care report.