Archived: Aster Women's Health

This was the first inspection for The Aster Baby Clinic Ltd. We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff to care for women and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect women from abuse, and managed safety well. Staff assessed risks to women, acted on them and kept good care records. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them.
• Staff provided good care and treatment. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of women, advised them on how to lead healthier lives, supported them to make decisions about their care, and had access to good information.
• Staff treated women 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 women, families and carers.
• The service planned care to meet the needs of local people, took account of women's 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 their results.
• 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 women receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged well with women and the community to plan and manage services and all staff were committed to improving services continually.

However:

• Ultrasound gel was decanted from large containers into smaller containers. This did not follow recent updates to national guidance and increased the risk of infection.
• The sharps container was not dated or named.
• Although the quality assurance of ultrasound equipment was completed in practice, this was not documented.
• The documentation with regards to patient consent was not clear.
• The service did not have an overall risk register at the time of our inspection.