Mayday Satellite Dialysis Unit

Mayday Satellite Dialysis Unit is operated by Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust. The unit is located within the premises of another NHS Trust. The service moved to its current premises on 2 March 2021. This new dialysis unit consists of 28 dialysis stations which includes four isolation rooms located across two floors. The unit has capacity to dialyse 84 patients daily, although staff informed us the unit was not yet working at full capacity.

This is the first inspection of Mayday Satellite Dialysis Unit. Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust was last inspected in May 2019 and the report was published on 19 September 2019. The trust was rated Good overall, with Requires Improvement in Safe.

We carried out an unannounced, focused inspection of Mayday Satellite Dialysis Unit on 29 April 2021, as we had received information that gave us concerns about the safety and quality of services at the unit. These concerns arose from a serious incident which occurred in September 2020.

We did not rate this service at this inspection. We found:

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills to provide the right care and treatment. The service controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. Managers investigated incidents and shared lessons learned with the whole team and the wider service.
• The service provided care and treatment based on national guidance and evidence-based practice.
• Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs.

However,

• Less than 50% of staff had completed resuscitation training for the location where the unit was based.
• Although staff were aware of what should be done in the event of a patient safety incident involving a patient on dialysis, they were not aware of the trust’s policy describing the process.

How we carried out the inspection

During the inspection we visited Elizabeth Ward dialysis unit across two floors. We interviewed three ward nurses, three senior staff and the resuscitation officer for Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust. We also spoke to two patients receiving care at the time of our inspection. We checked the resuscitation trolley, reviewed guidelines and three patient records on the electronic system and observed patient care.

You can find further information about how we carry out our inspections on our website: https://www.cqc.org.uk/what-we-do/how-we-do-our-job/what-we-do-inspection.