Archived: Old Street

This service is rated as good overall.

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 Old Street on 16 November 2021 as part of our inspection programme.

The service is operated by London Doctors Clinic Limited (the provider), an independent doctors service providing private general medical services at 23 locations across the UK, although primarily in London. All services are private, subject to payment of fees, and are usually used for patients with acute health issues, with long-term health conditions not being routinely managed. No NHS services are provided.

The provider 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 general exemptions from regulation by CQC, relating 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. For example, the provider offers some services to patients under arrangements made by their employer. These types of arrangements are exempt by law from CQC regulation and therefore we were only able to inspect the services which are not arranged for patients by their employers.

The provider’s Medical Director is the CQC registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the CQC 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:

• The service had clear systems to keep patients safe and safeguarded from abuse.
• Staff had the information they needed to deliver safe care and treatment to patients.
• The service had reliable systems for appropriate and safe handling of medicines.
• The service assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current standards and evidence-based guidance, and reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care provided.
• Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to carry out their roles.
• The service generally treated patients with kindness, respect and compassion, and staff recognised the importance of patients’ privacy and dignity.
• The service organised and delivered services to meet patients’ needs.
• Patients were able to access care and treatment from the service within an acceptable timescale for their needs.
• There was a clear leadership structure in place and staff felt supported by management.
• The provider had a culture of high-quality sustainable care.
• The service had a governance framework and had established effective processes for managing risks, issues and performance.
• There were systems and processes for learning, continuous improvement and innovation.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP
Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care