Harrison House

Updated 5 January 2023

Harrison House is an independent ambulance service that carries out non-emergency transfers of NHS patients from one NHS host organisation to the patient’s home, an intermediate place of care such as a nursing or residential home or to another NHS provider. Between 1st April 2022 through to 14th June 2022 almost 900 journeys were undertaken, 4600 patient journeys were undertaken in total between November 2021 and October 2022.

The service is registered to carry out the regulated activities of transport services, triage and medical advice provided remotely and treatment of disease, disorder and injury. Although the service is registered for the whole population it only transports adults over the age of 18 years.

The service has been registered to carry out regulated activities since March 2021 and has had a registered manager since that time.

Harrison House has not previously been inspected and no enforcement or compliance actions have been taken against this provider.

The service employs 14 members of staff and has over 159 members of bank staff which assist the service across the patient transport and event management side of the business which does not require registration.

Updated 5 January 2023

This service had not been inspected before. We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. The service controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them.
• Staff provided good care and treatment and assessed patients’ hydration requirements. The service met agreed response times. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, advised them on how to lead healthier lives.
• 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 service planned care to meet the needs of local people and made it easy for people to give feedback. People could access the service when they needed it and did not have to wait too long for treatment.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. The service engaged with patients and staff and were committed to improving services continually.

However:

• The service did not record whether staff had sought consent from patients prior to them being transported.
• The service did not always take account of patients’ individual needs such as language or additional communication requirements.
• No formal service level agreement was in place with the host organisation setting out responsibilities and accountabilities in patient care.

Updated 5 January 2023

This service had not been inspected before. We rated it as good.

See the summary above for details.