EAAA Passes CQC Inspection with Flying Colours

EAAA Passes CQC Inspection with Flying Colours

3-May-2013 Source: East Anglian Air Ambulance

The East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) has passed its most recent inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which confirms that everyone helped by the Charity receives care of the highest quality.

The EAAA, which provides the air ambulance service across Bedfordshire, Cambridge, Norfolk and Suffolk, operates from bases at Cambridge and Norwich.  It has to be inspected regularly by the CQC, the independent regulator of health and social care services in England, to ensure that its personnel and facilities meet a range of standards relating to overall quality and safety of care. The EAAA’s most recent inspections took place during March.  The subsequent reports, published in April, confirmed that each base was meeting the standards required in all categories inspected.

The CQC’s reports into the EAAA’s service have been welcomed by the Charity’s Chief Executive, Tim Page:  He said: “The CQC gave us a thorough inspection and we are very pleased with the results.  We aim to be a leader in pre-hospital emergency medicine and the Commission has recognised the efforts we are making in this direction.  There is more work to do, of course, and we are already aiming to exceed these high standards, but our dedicated operations and clinical staff should feel proud that they helped the Charity to achieve such positive feedback.”

Anna Price, Clinical Governance Manager at the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) which tasks the EAAA’s aircraft, added:  “The CQC’s reports are great news and we congratulate the EAAA.  Patients should know that, should they ever need the air ambulance, they will be treated by a team focused on providing the best possible care, based on the highest professional clinical standards and practice.”

The inspections were conducted during visits to both bases, through interviews with staff and detailed inspections of the premises, facilities and equipment, including the aircraft.
At the Norwich base, inspectors monitored how the Charity manages a patient’s consent to care and treatment through questionnaires sent out to patients by the EAAA.  The report noted that best practice from the NHS Ambulance Trust was adhered to and staff training was ongoing.  One patient highlighted the ‘human touch’ offered by staff during their treatment.

The inspection also covered areas including:
• The care and welfare of patients
• Cleanliness and infection control
• Assessments and monitoring of the quality of service provision.

At Cambridge the CQC reported on areas including:
• Safeguarding patients from abuse
• The management of medicines
• The safety, availability and suitability of equipment

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