Dottore London

This service is rated as Good overall. (Previous inspection 27 June 2019 – Good)

The key questions are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? – Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dottore London as part of our inspection programme. This inspection was planned to check whether the service was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Dottore London is a private health clinic in central London which specialises in offering private consultations and medical services for local and international patients living in London (primarily Italian nationals) with medical professionals including gynaecologists, paediatricians, midwives, dermatologists, orthopaedists, neurologists, neurosurgeons, urologists, radiologists, haematologists, general physicians, gastroenterologists, endocrinologists, cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, plastic surgeons, psychiatrists, physiotherapists, ear, nose and throat specialists, speech therapists, dietitians and psychotherapists. A complete list of services can be found on the clinic’s website.

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. Dottore London is registered in respect of the provision of treatment of diseases, disorder or injury, diagnostic and screening procedures, maternity and midwifery services and family planning services. Therefore, we were only able to inspect the clinical consultations, examinations and treatments for those services registered with CQC.

The director and founder is the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Our key findings were:

• There was an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
• Risks to patients were assessed and monitored.
• There was a system in place to receive safety alerts issued by government departments such as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
• Staff had the skills, knowledge, and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence-based guidance.
• To ensure and monitor the quality of the service, the service completed audits which showed the effectiveness of the service.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.
• The service held a range of policies and procedures which were in place to govern activity; staff were able to access these policies.
• We saw there was leadership within the service and the team worked together in a cohesive, supported, and open manner.
• The service proactively sought feedback from patients, which it acted on.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Ensure all oxygen cylinders are working correctly and at least half full.
• Ensure clinical staff are trained to the correct level of safeguarding for their role.
• Provide a formal appraisal system for non-clinical staff to ensure that staff are supported, their performance is managed and training and development opportunities are identified and explored.
• Continue to monitor strategy with regards to future objectives, including carrying out more audits and multidisciplinary team meetings.
• Continue to ensure that references are sought for all new employees to the service.

Dr Sean O’Kelly BSc MB ChB MSc DCH FRCA

Chief Inspector of Hospitals and Interim Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services