The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has taken enforcement action to cancel the registration of an independent cosmetic surgery provider, Aesthetic Beauty Centre LLP who are now no longer legally allowed to carry out regulated activities at their services in Grainger Park Road, Newcastle upon Tyne or Ashmore Terrace in Sunderland.
Inspectors visited the clinic in Newcastle upon Tyne in September 2019 following information of concern that highlighted issues with the management of deteriorating conditions in patients.
As a result of this inspection CQC imposed urgent conditions to prevent the provider from carrying out surgical procedures requiring local anaesthetic or sedation until 4 January 2020.
CQC returned to the service in December 2019 and in January 2020. Although the provider had made some changes, there was insufficient evidence of improvements and further concerns identified the provider was failing to provide care in line with the fundamental standards. The provider appealed this decision and CQC attended a tribunal where the panel ruled conditions would be extended for a further three months, until 4 April 2020.
Following the December and January inspections CQC undertook a further inspection at the Sunderland location in February 2020, following which CQC again took enforcement action and imposed urgent conditions to prevent the provider from carrying out surgical procedures requiring local anaesthetic, until 4 April 2020 at this location.
During an inspection at both locations in July 2020, the provider and staff provided lists of consultations which CQC identified the service had breached their conditions and recommenced prior to 1 July 2020.
A full history of CQC’s findings is available on our website.
Sarah Dronsfield, CQC’s head of hospital inspection in the north, said:
“Aesthetic Beauty Centre LLP has been given every chance to improve the services they provide since our first inspection in September 2019.
“Yet, despite intensive CQC engagement and inspections we have continued to find at both locations the provider has put people at risk by not focussing on patient safety, this included poor assessment of patients to identify risks, inappropriate management of deteriorating patients, not managing the risks of infection at both locations and there was little evidence of sustained actions to make the necessary improvements.
“This action should send a very clear message to all providers of independent health and care services that while taking enforcement action of this nature is not something we take lightly, we will always take action where appropriate to protect the health and safety of patients.
“The safe care and treatment of people using services is our highest priority and they deserve safe, effective high-quality care.”
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