Updated 28 March 2017
Information about the service
Quintiles Health Management Services is a large multinational organisation with a business unit that specialises in health management, including the provision of highly specialist service giving infusion therapy to patients in their own homes.
Our regulation of the organisation covers only the provision of the infusion of Tysabri home treatments. This is a specific treatment for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), which the organisation provides in partnership with NHS trusts. The treatment involves patients receiving a medicine by infusion in their own homes; the treatment lasts an hour.
Patients had the infusion medicine delivered directly to their homes by a separate delivery company one day prior to the day of the infusion. The delivery service is not covered under this registration and therefore was not inspected.
Patients who wish to receive home infusions are referred to the service by their local NHS trust. They must satisfy eligibility criteria to ensure they are suitable to receive their infusion at home.
At the time of our inspection the service was used by six patients. All patients remained under the care of clinicians at their local NHS trust, two were with one trust and four were with another.
Quintiles employ specially trained nurses to infuse the home treatment to these selected patients. Managers within the service are also nurses who have been trained to give the home infusion treatment.
At the time of our inspection, there were three registered nurses who attended patients’ homes. They visited patients in their own homes every 28 days to carry out the treatment. These treatment visits were carried out on a pre-arranged and appointment-only basis.