CQC Inspection for Private Ambulance Firm ERS Medical

Specialist healthcare transport provider ERS Medical has undergone a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection of its services at the Slough site.

Carried out via an unannounced visit by the CQC, the regulator of health and social care in England, the ERS Medical inspection looked at non-emergency transport services to patients and employees for Barts Health NHS Trust. In particular, outcomes 12, 13 and 14 were inspected and covered “requirements relating to workers, staffing and supporting workers.”

The findings in the inspection report detailed unexpected challenges presented by the contract, and ERS Medical’s prompt responses to resolve issues by recruiting additional staff and providing additional resources. The CQC’s judgement in the report also states that they found “enough, qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people’s needs”, “People were cared for, or supported by, suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff”, and “People were cared for by staff who were supported to deliver care and treatment safely and to an appropriate standard”.

Staff at the site also told the CQC that they received a lot of informal supervision and support in addition to mandatory training by ERS Medical. They said this was because the managers made themselves readily accessible.

Jonathan Trattles, Clinical Manager at ERS Medical and registered site manager for the ERS Medical Slough site said, “We’re here to deliver excellent patient care that is driven by a good patient experience. And, when faced with any challenges, it is also about working as a team to quickly resolve any issues and in a timely manner.”

“We are pleased by this CQC inspection that only goes to highlight why we’re positively different.”