Mediskills

Updated 28 January 2020

Mediskills provides a n independent ambulance service which is based in Stockport , Manchester.

Mediskills main business is primarily as a training and events organisation . It provides events medical support via fully qualified NHS trained professionals who are either registered paramedics or nurses to support events, training and TV/Film units.

Mediskills presently has one small contract to deliver a n events and patient transport service to hospital , should the need occur , with a Manchester based film studio.

At the time of inspection, t he service ha d no vehicles of its own and contract hire d ready to use ambulances from a local provider.

It has a base and provides all relevant equipment for hired ambulances from the building.

We inspected this service using our comprehensive inspection methodology. We carried out the unannounced inspection on 15 Ju ly 2019.

The service is registered to provide the following regulated activities:

• Patient Transport Services.

• Treatment of disease and injur y

During the inspection, we visited its base in Hyde Manchester. We spoke with three staff including; the two owners of the organisation, one of which was a consultant nurse and the other a registered paramedic . We also talked to an employee of the organisation who also provides medical support for the present regulated activity provided and is also a registered paramedic . We spoke with no patients because the service was not providing any regulated work on the day of our inspection.

There were no special reviews or investigations of the service ongoing by the CQC at any time during the 12 months before this inspection.

This was the service’s first inspection since registration with CQC, which found that the service was meeting all standards of quality and safety it was inspected against.

Activity ( June 2018 to March 201 9 )

• In the reporting period June 2018 to March 2019 there were one patient transport journey undertaken.

Track record on safety

• Zero Never events

• Clinical incidents - one no harm, zero low harm, zero moderate harm, zero severe harm, zero death

• Zero serious injuries

• Zero complaints

Updated 28 January 2020

​ Mediskills is operated by Mediskills Ltd . This service is registered with CQC under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 in respect of some, but not all, of the services it provides. There are some exemptions from regulation by CQC which relate to particular types of service and these are set out in Schedule 2 of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

Mediskills provides services to patients taking part in or attending a television studio event and also provides training services. These types of arrangements are exempt by law from CQC regulation. Therefore, the services provided to patients taking part in or attending the television studio event were not inspected.

The service provides a regulated patient transport service in the event that a patient requires transfer to hospital . During the previous year one transfer had taken plac e.

We inspected this service using our comprehensive inspection methodology. We carried out the unannounced visit to the service on 15 July 2019 .

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment , we ask the same five questions of all services: are they safe, effective, caring, responsive to people's needs, and well-led?

Throughout the inspection, we took account of what people told us and how the provider understood and complied with the Me ntal Capacity Act 2005 .

We rated this service as Good overall.

• The service provided managers with access to staff ’ s mandatory training history in key skills and made sure everyone completed it.

• Staff understood how to protect patients from abuse and the service worked well with other agencies to do so. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it.

• The service-controlled infection risk well. Staff used equipment and control measures to protect patients, themselves and others from infection. Whilst the organisation did not own ambulances and leased them, they had processes in place to keep vehicles clean and also kept their premises and equipment visibly clean.

• Staff had systems in place to completed and updated risk assessments for each patient and removed or minimised risks. Staff could identify and quickly acted upon patients at risk of deterioration.

• The service had enough staff with the right qualifications, skills, training and experience to keep patients safe from avoidable harm and to provide the right care and treatment. Managers regularly reviewed and adjusted staffing levels and skill mix and gave bank, agency and locum staff a full induction.

• Staff kept detailed records of patients’ care and treatment. Records were clear, up-to-date, stored securely and easily available to all staff providing care.

• The service managed patient safety incidents well. Staff had processes in place to recognised incidents and near misses and could reported them appropriately.

• The service provided care and treatment based on national guidance and evidence-based practice

• All those responsible for delivering care worked together as a team to benefit patients. They supported each other to provide good care and communicated effectively with other agencies.

• The service planned and provided care in a way that met the needs of people and the communities served.

• The service was inclusive and took account of patients’ individual needs and preferences. Staff made reasonable adjustments to help patients access services. They coordinated care with other services and providers.

• Leaders had the integrity, skills and abilities to run the service. They understood and managed the priorities and issues the service faced.

However:

• Governance systems to manage risks and performance needed to be further developed to be more robust.

• The vision and strategy for the service needed to be further developed.

Following this inspection, we told the provider that it must take some actions to comply with the regulations and that it should make other improvements, even though a regulation had not been breached, to help the service improve. We also issued the provider with one requirement notice that affected patient transport services. Details are at the end of the report.

Ann Ford

De puty Chief Inspector of Hospitals ( North region ) , on behalf of the Chief Inspector of Hospitals

Updated 28 January 2020

Mediskills ha d one contract to deliver a patient transport service to hospital from an event , should the need occur . The service had transferred one patient in the last year.

We rated safe, effective, responsive and well-led as good. We were unable to rate caring due to the lack of regulated activity.