Window to the Womb

Updated 4 July 2022

Window to the Womb is owned by the provider, Peterborough Ultraasound Scans Limited, and operates under a franchise agreement with Window to the Womb (WTTW) (Franchise) Ltd. The service provides diagnostic pregnancy ultrasound services to self-funding women living in Peterborough, Ipswich, Nottingham, Northampton and surrounding areas.

Window to the Womb opened in December 2018 and provides early pregnancy scans from six weeks and diagnostic pregnancy ultrasound services to women from 16 to 42 weeks of pregnancy.

The service is available to women aged 18 years and above. However, young women from the age of 16 can also use the service if accompanied by an appropriate adult. All ultrasound scans performed at Window to the Womb are in addition to those provided through the NHS as part of a pregnancy care pathway.

As part of the agreement, the franchisor (Window to the Womb Ltd) provides the clinic with regular onsite support, access to their guidelines and policies, training and the use of their business model and brand.

At the time of our inspection, the clinic employed one registered manager, one clinic manager, four sonographers and five scan assistants. The service did not employ any medical staff. The clinic did not store or administer any medicines or controlled drugs.

The service had a registered manager in post and was registered to carry out the following regulated activities:

• Diagnostic and screening procedures

Window to the Womb was registered in 2018 and had not been previously inspected.

Updated 4 July 2022

This was the first inspection for Window to the Womb. 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.
• Although we saw evidence of risk assessments and a centrally held risk register, we did not see evidence of a local risk register for the service.

Updated 4 July 2022

This is the first time we have rated this service. We rated it as good overall.

We rated this service as good because it was safe, caring, responsive and well led. We do not rate the effective domain in diagnostic and screening services.

Please refer to overall summary above.