An online clinic providing sexual health services across the UK has been rated outstanding by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), following its first inspection in March.
SH:24 in London, also known as 35a Westminster Bridge Rd, is a community interest company that works with the NHS to provide people with free sexually transmitted infection test kits, diagnosis, treatment, contraception, and information and advice 24 hours a day.
The service was developed with grant funding from Guys and St Thomas’s NHS Foundation Trust charity.
As well as being rated outstanding overall the service was also rated outstanding for being safe, effective, caring, responsive to people’s needs and well-led.
Jane Ray, CQC head of hospital inspection, said:
“The high standards of care we saw at SH:24 were exemplary. The privacy and dignity of patients was paramount, and they were treated with compassion and kindness.
“Feedback from people using the service was consistently positive and the flexibility and choice offered meant that they benefitted from bespoke treatment, tailored to their individual needs. The round-the-clock availability of the service increased people’s access to safe sexual and reproductive healthcare, particularly for vulnerable groups in rural areas.
“The service is of direct benefit to communities right across the UK, and other services can look to this as an example of outstanding care.”
The service’s contribution to innovation, improvement and increased access to sexual and reproductive healthcare was among the outstanding practice found at the inspection.
New and innovative ways of working meant that the service reached vulnerable groups that hadn’t been able to access sexual health services before, while clinicians and product developers worked collaboratively to improve digital systems and respond swiftly to patient feedback, to ensure resources were inclusive and accessible.
The service also informed work across the wider sector. It regularly published research in peer-reviewed health and medical journals, and regularly presented its findings to colleagues at local, national and international conferences.
Staff also contributed to the research and development of national guidance for the management of medicines.
The inspection also found:
- The service significantly scaled-up its online contraceptive services at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in response to reduced in-person clinics They did this quickly, safely and effectively.
- The service was providing more than 10,000 STI test kits a week to people across the UK and Ireland.
- There was a consistently good track record of patient safety at the service, which was a priority.
- A genuine focus on openness and transparency meant that the service managed any incidents well and learnt from them to improve, with managers monitoring overall effectiveness.
- There were enough staff, trained in key skills to care for people and keep them safe, including protecting them from abuse.
- Management of medicines was in line with national guidance.
- Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, supporting them to make decisions about their care and advising them on how to live healthier lives.
- Staff were focused on the needs of people receiving care and treated them with compassion and kindness, respecting their privacy and dignity. They showed discretion and valued patients as individuals.
- The service provided patients with valuable online resources to keep them informed and make positive choices about their lives.
- Services were available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and technology was used innovatively to ensure patients had access to treatment, support and care at a time that suited them.
- Patients were provided with valuable online resources to keep them informed and make positive choices about their lives.
- The leadership, governance and culture of the service was used to drive and continuously improve the high-quality, person-centred care provided.
- Staff understood the service’s visions and values and knew how to apply them in their work.
- Staff felt respected, support and valued.
- The service engaged well with patients and the community to plan and manage services.
- The service contributed to innovation and improvement in sexual reproductive health.
Full details of the inspection are given in the report published on our website.
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