The Care Quality Commission
  • Mental Health
  • Independent mental health service

Priory Wellbeing Centre - Canterbury

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

92b Broad Street, Canterbury, Kent, CT1 2LU (01227) 452171

Provided and run by:
Priory Healthcare Limited

All Inspections

18th June 2018

During a routine inspection

We rated the Priory Wellbeing Centre Canterbury as good because:

  • Patients said that the staff were kind, caring and compassionate. They were very positive about the support, therapy and treatment they had been receiving. Staff encouraged patients to give feedback about the service.

  • Staff used a range of appropriate screening and assessment tools to help assess patients’ mental health. These were undertaken to monitor how effective treatment had been in helping the patient recover. The service delivered a range of psychological therapies recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. There were effective handovers and channels of communication between team members. The team had good links with other services within mental health pathways. Staff had effective working relationships with professionals and agencies external to the organisation.

  • The service was able to assess patients quickly. There were no waiting lists for either referral to assessment or from assessment to commencement of therapy or treatment. Evening appointments were available four days each week and a Saturday morning clinic was also available for those patients at work, college or with other commitments during the day.

  • The centre was clean, well maintained and staff carried out regular environmental audits. The consulting rooms, reception and waiting rooms were soundproofed to maintain confidentiality. The waiting area was spacious, well furnished, with availability of hot and cold beverages for patients and visitors.

  • The service was wed-led and staff at the centre had systems and procedures in place to ensure that the premises were safe and clean. There were enough staff available who were well trained and supervised regularly. Any incidents were investigated promptly and recommendations had been implemented following any lessons learnt from incident investigations, complaints and safeguarding alerts.

  • Staff felt valued and listened to, which gave them more confidence to contribute new ideas. Staff told us they felt proud about working for the organisation and they were motivated and passionate about providing care and treatment for patients to a high standard.

However:

  • Out of 11 patients’ care records, two had no risk assessment documented and five risk assessments had not been updated according to the provider’s policy. In addition, patients did not have any crisis or contingency plans documented. A requirement notice was issued in relation to the above. See ‘Action we have told the provider to take’ section for more information.

  • Four patient care plans were not up to date in line with the provider’s record keeping policy.

  • There was no documentation in the electronic care records to show that patients had been involved in discussions about their treatment of therapy or that patients had received a copy of their care plan.

20 January 2014

During a routine inspection

We did not speak with people who use the service, or observe treatments at the clinic as people were reluctant to be identified to the inspectors due to the sensitive nature of their treatment at the clinic.

We reviewed five sets of treatment records and we found that therapists and clinicians involved people in their treatment plan, and included the person's input in determining goals to be achieved. We found that people were able to give consent to their treatment plan, or decline it if they felt it did not meet their needs.

We found that the treatment records were comprehensive, with chronological information about the initial referral, assessments and treatment progression. We spoke with a consultant psychiatrist who told us that the therapists and clinicians were well supported in their roles. We reviewed four personnel records and found evidence of continuous supervision.

We reviewed the arrangements for information sharing and referral where people required more than one health care professional to be involved in their treatment. We found that clinicians and therapists maintained good communication links with external health care professionals such as people's general practitioners (GP), to ensure a seamless and coordinated service.

We noted that the clinic manager carried out regular audits to monitor the quality of the service, and to ensure that the policies and procedures were being followed. We found that there was evidence of changes made after comments received from people, and we saw that feedback mechanisms were made available to people who use the service.

1 March 2013

During a routine inspection

We did not speak with people receiving treatment or observe treatments at the clinic, as people were reluctant to be identified to the inspectors. We spoke with a relative of a person receiving treatment. The relative told us "We have had no cause for complaint with the treatment here".

We also spoke with two staff members and reviewed staff development files. We noted that there were updated records relating to verification of staff qualifications and professional development. We reviewed four medical records, and found that they were comprehensive, with chronological information about the initial referral, assessments and treatment progression.

We reviewed policies and procedures at the clinic, and found that they referred to current national guidance. We noted that the clinic manager carried out regular audits to monitor the quality of the service, and to ensure that the policies and procedures were being followed.

6 March 2012

During a routine inspection

People told us that they were 'Very impressed' with the service they received at The Priory Clinic Canterbury.

People told us that they liked the atmosphere of the service. The said 'It is always very calming there and the staff always have a smile at the right time'.