The Care Quality Commission
  • Ambulance service

OBS Medics Base

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Unit 3 Pilch Farm, Pilch Lane, Singleborough, Milton Keynes, MK17 0NX 0800 772 3063

Provided and run by:
OBS Medics Ltd

All Inspections

30.03.2022

During a routine inspection

Our rating of this service improved. We rated it as good because:

  • The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. Managers made sure staff were competent for their roles. Staff assessed risks to patients and acted on them. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them.
  • The service controlled infection risk by using the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) in line with the service policy.
  • Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity. They provided emotional support to patients.
  • The service delivered care to meet the needs of local people, took account of patients’ individual needs, and made it easy for people to give feedback.
  • Leaders supported staff to develop their skills. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged well with patients to improve services.

However:

  • Managers used only a limited number of systems to monitor and improve the service’s performance.
  • Managers did not monitor ongoing risks to the service.
  • Mangers had not completed annual follow up DBS checks in line with the services policy.
  • Managers did not have a formal strategy to improve the service and staff did not understand the service’s vision and values.

Wednesday 3 February 2021

During a routine inspection

This is the first time we have rated this service. We rated it as requires improvement because:

  • Not all staff had received training in key skills. At the time of our inspection, mandatory training compliance was 66%. Staff did not collect safety information or use it to improve the service. There was limited evidence the service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them. However, staff understood how to protect patients from abuse. The service mostly controlled infection risk well and had enough staff to care for patients. The service managed medicines well.
  • Managers did not monitor the effectiveness of the service. There was limited evidence to demonstrate patients were supported to make decisions about their care. However, the service provided care and treatment based on national guidance and evidence-based practice. Managers ensured that staff were competent to carry out their role. Staff provided good care gave patients enough to drink and had access to policies and procedures based on legislation and national guidance.
  • There was limited evidence that systems and processes were in place to take account of a patient’s individual needs. However, staff told us how they treated patients with compassion, kindness and respected their privacy and dignity.
  • The service planned care to meet the needs of local people. However, there were limited systems and processes in place to take account of patients’ individual needs and to enable people to give feedback. The were no measures in place, such as key performance indicators to enable senior staff to monitor response or journey times.
  • Leaders did not effectively identify, address and mitigate all risks the service faced. The service’s vision and strategy was in its infancy at the time of our inspection. There was limited evidence of regular staff and leader engagement. The service had limited systems and processes in place to engage patients and the community to plan and manage services.