Archived: Mars SecureTransport & Recruitment Service Ltd

Updated 24 December 2019

MARS Secure Transport & Recruitment Services Ltd is operated by MARS Secure Transport & Recruitment Services Ltd. The service has been registered to provide a regulated service since July 2016. It is an independent ambulance service in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire. The service offers nationwide services for mental health patient transfers.

The service provides secure patients transport for mainly adult patients with mental health needs, however, they also provide transfers for children with mental health needs.

Transfers completed were predominantly from institutions to residential, acute settings for medical care or courts. Although the service was registered for patient transport services, patients carried by the service were physically well.

The service has had a registered manager in post since registration in July 2016. This was the second inspection since registration, with the previous inspection completed in November 2018 when the service was not rated.

Updated 24 December 2019

MARS Secure Transport & Recruitment Services Ltd is operated by MARS Secure Transport & Recruitment Services Ltd. The service provides patient transport service.

We inspected this service using our comprehensive inspection methodology. We carried out the inspection on 1 October 2019.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we ask the same five questions of all services: are they safe, effective, caring, responsive to people's needs, and well-led?

Throughout the inspection, we took account of what people told us and how the provider understood and complied with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The service had not been rated previously. We rated it as Good overall.

• Patient and staff safety was taken seriously. Incidents were managed well, and there were clear processes in place for escalation.

• Staff were aware of their roles and responsibilities and completed training to enhance their roles.

• Staff were trained to recognise potential abuse and were aware of their roles and responsibilities in escalating any concerns. There was a clear process in place for reporting concerns.

• Staff managed infection risk well, ensuring that equipment was appropriately cleaned to reduce any risks.

• The service had appropriate facilities which were well maintained.

• Staff ensured that risk assessments were completed prior to agreeing to any patient transfers. This ensured that there were the appropriate number and type of staff available to reduce any risks associate with transferring low to high risk mental health patients.

• There were enough staffing numbers to meet service demands, and staff were trained and experienced in the right skills to meet the needs of the service.

• The service provided care and treatment based on national guidance and evidence-based practice.

• The service monitored appointment times to ensure that patients were transported in a timely manner. Journey times and feedback from organisations was collected to monitor performance and used to develop the service.

• The service made sure staff were competent for their roles. Training was provided by an external agency and managers appraised staff’s work performance and provided support and development.

• All staff worked together as a team to benefit patients. They supported each other to provide good care and communicated effectively with other agencies.

• Staff completed Mental Capacity Act training and knew how to support patients who lacked capacity or were experiencing mental ill health.

• Staff spoke of patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, and took account of their individual needs.

• Staff provided emotional support to patients and carers to minimise their distress. They understood patients’ personal, cultural and religious needs.

• Staff supported and involved patients when possible in the transfer process.

• The service provided care in a way that met the needs of a specific client group. It worked with other organisations to ensure that patient transfers were completed safely and ensured that the patients' needs were central to all planned transfers.

• The service was inclusive and took account of patients’ individual needs and preferences. The service made reasonable adjustments to help patients using the service.

• People could access the service when they needed it and the service used technology to support the functioning of the service.

• The service collected feedback from people and had a process in place for managing concerns.

• Leaders had the skills and abilities to run the service. They understood and managed the priorities and issues the service faced and were visible and approachable.

• The service had a vision and a plan for what it wanted to achieve, which was focused on delivering a high-quality service.

• Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care.

• Leaders operated effective governance processes, throughout the service and with partner organisations. Staff at all levels were clear about their roles and accountabilities and had regular opportunities to meet, discuss and learn from the performance of the service.

• Leaders and teams used systems to manage performance effectively. They identified and escalated relevant risks, issues and identified actions to reduce their impact. They had plans to cope with unexpected events.

• The service collected reliable data and analysed it. Staff could find the data they needed, in easily accessible formats, to understand performance, make decisions and improvements. The information systems were integrated and secure.

• Leaders and staff actively and openly engaged staff and local organisations to plan and manage services. They collaborated with partner organisations to help improve services for patients.

• All staff were committed to continually learning and improving services. They had a good understanding of quality improvement methods and the skills to use them.

However, we found the following issues that the service provider needs to improve:

• All staff had the correct level of safeguarding training, (level 3) however, did not have direct access to someone with a higher level of safeguarding knowledge within the company.

• The service did not complete their own risk assessment prior to accepting a patient transfer.

• There was a gap in the clinical oversight of the service, as there was not a designated lead clinician to support the service with clinical expertise and support for service developments

Following this inspection, we told the provider that it should make improvements, even though a regulation had not been breached, to help the service improve. Details are at the end of the report.

Name of signatory

Heidi Smoult

Deputy Chief Inspector of Hospitals (Central), on behalf of the Chief Inspector of Hospitals

Updated 24 December 2019

The main service was patient transport services MARS Secure Transport and Recruitment Services Ltd specialised in the transportation of patients with mental health conditions between other organisations or locations. The service provided transport services only, supporting referring services with additional staff for the safe transportation of low, medium and high-risk patients. We rated the service good for safe, effective, caring and well led. We rated responsive as outstanding.