By Grimsby medical transport provider ‘not made improvements’ after second inspection
Independent medical transport provider labelled ‘inadequate’ following another unannounced inspection that saw an ‘unsafe practice’.
Ambulances owned by a Grimsby medical transport provider, Mobile Medical Cover, received an overall rating of ‘inadequate’ following an unannounced inspection in May by the CQC (Care Quality Commission). The company, located on Spencer Street, operates ambulances at local events,
Officers conducted the follow-up inspection after the company’s services were previously suspended by the CQC in February after two inspections branded the suspension. Mobile Medical Cover applied to have the suspension lifted and resumed business in April.
The company was rated ‘inadequate’ again in both categories, just a month later and elements were rated ‘inadequate’ in both, requiring improvement.
The CQC report – which was published on July 27 – reads: “We inspected five ambulances which we saw continued to be visibly dirty with accumulations of dust and dirt on horizontal and vertical surfaces. Vehicles had damage to the interior of the vehicle body which would prevent effective cleaning and there continued to be damage to the seating with multiple breaks in the fabric which would prevent effective cleaning.
“Protective casing continued to be missing from around the seating which had led to accumulations of rust that would again prevent effective cleaning. Patient equipment within each vehicle continued to be visibly dirty which demonstrated that it was not regularly cleaned after each use.
“We continued to see large quantities of medicines stored at the service location. We saw no separation of medicines with different strengths such as paediatric liquid paracetamol. This increased the risk of incorrect medicines being administered. We continued to see large quantities of medicines that had been removed from the packaging which were then stored with other medicines without the product information sheet. This was unsafe practice as it reduced the identification of medicines.
“Oxygen on board ambulances were less than one-quarter full, this meant that there were no assurances that patients who required oxygen on a journey would be able to receive it.
“We found little improvement in leadership and management of the service following the previous inspection in February 2022. Issues with the quality of the service had not been identified or addressed and the service had not made improvements.”
