DaVita (UK) Ltd - Newcastle

Updated 10 December 2021

Renal Services Ltd (UK) - Newcastle is operated by Renal Services Ltd (UK). The service opened in May 2016. It is a private clinic in North Shields, Newcastle Upon Tyne. The service is contracted by a local NHS trust for the provision of outpatient renal dialysis to their patients in the Newcastle area. They had 10 dialysis stations and had provided 6,500 dialysis sessions in the last 12 months.

The regional manager was the CQC registered manager.

The service is registered with the CQC to provide the following regulated activities: Treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

Updated 10 December 2021

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. They managed medicines well. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them. Staff collected safety information and used it to improve the service.
• Staff provided good care and treatment, supported patients to eat, drink, and be comfortable. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, advised them on how to lead healthier lives, supported them to make decisions about their care, and had access to good information. Key services were available to suit patients' needs.
• Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions. They provided emotional support to patients, families and carers.
• The service planned care to meet the needs of local people, took account of patients’ individual needs, and made it easy for people to give feedback. People could access the service when they needed it and did not have to wait too long for treatment.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged well with patients and the community to plan and manage services and all staff were committed to improving services continually.

However:

• While there were infection control measures in place, disposable privacy curtains had not been changed for two years and the frequency of required changes was not clear in the infection control policy. Disposable suction tubing on the resuscitation trolley had expired but was not part of the regular checks so had not been picked up.
• While there were processes in place to manage medicines actions to address issues was not always clear. Ambient temperatures of medicines storage areas were at times above the required range. Actions were not clearly recorded.
• While there were risk assessments in place with regular review and action taken, including for fire safety, gaps in fire alarm testing had not been recognised.
• While there were service arrangements in place for equipment maintenance, emergency equipment was overdue calibration and three dialysis machines were overdue servicing.
• Patients with a DNACPR (do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation) did not have the decision recorded clearly in their patient record.
• Staff surveys were carried out but actions to improve were not clear.
• Quality assurance audits were not always effectively utilised to identify risks and issues.

Updated 10 December 2021

Our rating of this service stayed the same. We rated it as good because:

See overall summary for more information.