The Private Ultrasound Clinic Ltd

Updated 31 May 2023

The service provides a range of non-diagnostic pregnancy scans – reassurance (6-16 weeks), dating (11-14 weeks), gender (16 weeks) and reassurance including wellbeing (16-39 weeks). Other scans undertaken are pelvic (abdominal, vaginal (women) and rectum (men)) as well as small part scans, for example thyroid gland, the neck and the testes.

The service is registered for the regulated activity of diagnostic and screening procedures and the treatment of patients aged 18-65, and those over 65. Currently the service is applying to increase the age categories to be able to undertake paediatric hip scans.

The service was privately owned and the two owners are registered, one as the nominated individual, and the other as the registered manager who is also the sole clinician undertaking scans.

Throughout this report the registered manager/sole clinician is referred to as the ‘registered manager’.

This service has not been previously inspected.

Updated 31 May 2023

We undertook a comprehensive inspection of The Private Ultrasound Clinic on 9 March 2023 and contacted a number of patients for their feedback on the service up to 22 March 2023.

The service was registered in 2019 and was set up to provide a self-referring ultrasound service for non-diagnostic reassurance pregnancy scans and general abdominal, gynaecological, and small part non-obstetric ultrasound scans (NOUS).

We rated this service as good overall because the service was safe, caring, responsive, and well led; we inspected but do not rate effective.

Updated 31 May 2023

We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff with the right qualifications, skills, training and experience to keep patients safe from avoidable harm and to provide the right care and treatment. The registered manager completed and updated risk assessments for each patient and removed or minimised risks. The registered manager understood how to protect patients from abuse. The registered manager used equipment and control measures to protect patients, themselves and others from infection. The design, maintenance and use of facilities, premises and equipment kept people safe.
• The service provided care and treatment based on national guidance and evidence-based practice. The registered manager monitored the effectiveness of care and treatment. The service made sure staff were competent for their role. Key services were available to support timely patient care. The registered manager supported patients to make informed decisions about their care and treatment.
• Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions. They provided emotional support to patients, families and carers.
• The registered manager and nominated individual planned and provided care in a way that met the needs of local people and the communities served. The service was inclusive and took account of patients’ individual needs and preferences. People could access the service when they needed it and received the right care promptly. It was easy for people to give feedback and raise concerns about care received.
• Leaders had the skills and abilities to run the service. The service had a vision for what it wanted to achieve and a strategy to turn it into action. The registered manager and nominated individual were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. The registered manager and nominated individual operated governance processes and were clear about their roles and had regular opportunities to discuss and learn from the performance of the service. The registered manager and nominated individual used systems to manage performance. The service collected reliable data and analysed it to understand performance, make decisions and improvements. The registered manager and nominated individual actively and openly engaged with patients and referrers to plan and manage services.

However:

• An overall risk register had not been developed and maintained;
• Not all individual patient needs were identified during the appointment booking process and personal information stored was not always clear;
• An overall policy register incorporating a policy review schedule was not in place;
• Not all treatments offered on the service website corresponded with the service’ registration and needed to be updated.

We rated this service as good because it was safe, caring, responsive, and well-led.