The Care Quality Commission has taken action to remove the registration of a slimming clinic in South Yorkshire. Medical Slimming Clinics Ltd, with locations in Rotherham and Doncaster, have had their registration to operate withdrawn following inspections in 2016 and 2017
The provider was found to be breaching regulations relating to safe care and treatment, good governance and fit and proper persons.
At the Doncaster clinic, inspectors found that patients were treated with unlicensed medicines. It is permissible to treat patients with unlicensed medicines but there is a higher risk than treating patients with licensed medicines, because unlicensed medicines may not have been assessed for safety, quality and efficacy.
Inspections of the Doncaster and Rotherham clinics in December 2016 and January 2017 respectively led to CQC beginning a legal process to cancel the registration of Medical Slimming Clinics Ltd and in May 2017 a formal Notice of Decision to cancel their registration was issued.
The company decided to appeal the decision at a tribunal, but in January 2018 withdrew their appeal. The clinics have closed.
Sarah Billington, CQC Head of Medicines Optimisation, said:
“It is our duty to ensure that health and social care services provide people with safe, effective and high-quality care. It was clear from our inspections that both locations were operating outside of safe guidelines. The medicines used by the clinic were not always safely prescribed and there was inadequate sharing of information with GPs, as well as lack of effective governance processes and inadequate leadership."
“Inspectors saw examples of medical histories not being fully completed and in one case medicines had been prescribed when they were contra-indicated. Additionally, decisions relating to treatment had not been clearly recorded in the patient’s notes. This represents very poor practice."
“It is only right that where CQC sees poor practice, it takes decisive action to stop it. Users of this service were at risk due to inadequate prescribing and poor record keeping, CQC had no confidence that they could operate safely and comply with regulations."
“People have the right to know the quality of care they are receiving – in this case a service that was providing ineffective services at two locations. Medical Slimming Clinics were not providing safe services and CQC acted to remove their registration”
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It is only right that where CQC sees poor practice, it takes decisive action to stop it
Sarah Billington, CQC Head of Medicines Optimisation