The Care Quality Commission
  • Community
  • Community healthcare service

Abbott Nurse Advisor Service Also known as Abbott Nutrition

Abbott House, Vanwall Business Park, Vanwall Road, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 4XE (01628) 773355

Provided and run by:
Abbott Laboratories Limited

All Inspections

12 & 13 December 2016

During a routine inspection

The Abbott Nurse Advisor Service acted to promote and protect the safety of patients, their family members, carers and staff. The service demonstrated patients were at the centre of their service delivery and developments.

Processes were followed to ensure equipment was available and safe to use for both staff and patients. The provider had assurance that staff employed had the skills, competencies and knowledge to carry out their role. Risks of abuse and neglect were mitigated by staff who had a good understanding about safeguarding both for vulnerable adults and children, and who knew the safeguarding procedures in the localities they worked in. The service showed it took action and learnt from incidents. This included incidents occurring outside the organisation, incidents relating to the delivery of patient care that the NHS trusts investigated and responding to national patient safety alerts. However, some nurses did not have a full understanding about the process for reporting and alerting contracting NHS trusts about incidents that involved the delivery of care and treatment by that NHS trust

The service demonstrated good outcomes for patients. The care and support provided prevented hospital visits and admissions, and enabled patients to independently care for and administer their enteral feeds. Multi-disciplinary teamwork with the local trust’s dietitians and nutrition nurses supported a cohesive, patient-centred dietary and enteral feeding service for patients.

Staff provided compassionate and friendly care to patients, treating them with respect and dignity. The aim of the service was to support patients to independently manage their own feeding tubes and administration of feeds. Training to achieve this was delivered at a pace and in the environment that best supported the patient’s individual needs.

Staff had a good understanding of the emotional impact and anxieties patients experienced. Mechanisms were in place for patients to access support and advise 24 hours a day.

There was an embedded strategy and vision for the service which staff demonstrated commitment to in their working practices. The service had effective systems and processes that were used to monitor and support improvements in the quality of the service and monitored risks and their associated mitigating actions. The service considered the views of patients in the development of the service.

10, 11, 17, 18 October 2013

During a routine inspection

During the course of our inspection and writing our report, the provider decided to change the name of their location from 'Abbott Nutrition' to 'Abbott Nurse Advisor Service'. This was because the name of the location chosen at the time of registration did not accurately reflect the type of service the provider offered. This report reflects the new location name only. The provider also operates services to patients located in England, Scotland and Wales. The Care Quality Commission is responsible for inspecting health and social care locations in England only. Therefore this report includes only evidence from patients, staff and records related to our jurisdiction of England.

Our inspection of the Abbott Nurse Advisor Service took four days because of the size of the service and number of patients. On the first day we met with managers in the registered location address, spoke with staff and viewed documents relevant to the regulations. The second day of our inspection involved observing nurses employed by the provider caring for patients who use the service. The final two days of our inspection involved telephone interviews of patients, relatives and advocates by an expert by experience.

Patients who use the Abbott Nurse Advisor Service received enteral feeding. Enteral feeding is defined as artificial nutrition delivered via a tube to patients who cannot obtain nutrition by mouth, are unable to swallow safely, or need nutritional supplementation.

Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure patient safety and welfare. We saw that for each patient that accessed the service, a series of assessments and documents were completed by the nurse in collaboration with the patient.

Everyone we spoke with felt safe with the care from the provider and no one ever had to report concerns with the care provided. Patients we spoke with also told us they felt comfortable contacting the provider if they ever had problems in the future.

Appropriate checks were undertaken before staff began work. We looked at five employee files. Staff recruitment records we looked at showed proper procedures had been followed.

Patients we spoke with had only complimentary comments about the nurses. One patient told us, 'They're spot on'. When asked about the nurses that helped looked after them, another patient said, 'They're wonderful'. Patients were aware of the provider's complaints system but told us they had never had to raise a concern.

Patients who use the service understood the care and treatment choices available to them. We spoke to thirteen patients, their advocates and their relatives about the care information provided to them by the Abbott Nurse Advisor Service. Patients were complimentary about the involvement level offered to them by the provider.