A cosmetic surgery in Reading's town centre which failed to adequately check for legionella bacteria risks has been told it must make improvements following an inspection.

A recent Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection found Chiltern Medical on Broad Street requires improvement.

This follows an inspection from the CQC last year which found the company’s Goring site also requires improvement.

READ MORE: Cosmetic surgery which hadn’t adequately trained staff told it ‘requires improvements’

Although the CQC found the surgery “largely performed well”, it said it did not meet legal requirements relating to safe care and treatment and good governance.

It said the service did not ensure all risks were assessed by a person with relevant skills and did not have effective governance processes to assess, monitor and improve the service.

The surgery also did not always assess patients’ individual needs prior to attending an appointment.

A key area of concern was the risk of legionella bacteria spreading due to the lack of risk assessments.

Legionella bacteria are found naturally in freshwater environments, like lakes and streams. The bacteria can become a health concern when they grow and spread in human-made building water systems like air conditioning systems, humidifiers or hot tubs.

Legionella bacteria can cause a serious type of pneumonia called Legionnaires’ disease and also a less serious illness called Pontiac fever.

The CQC report said: “The clinic’s legionella risk had not been fully assessed. The risk assessment had not been completed by a competent person in the assessment of legionella risks.

“This meant that there were unknown risks in the water system relating to debris in the water or infrequently used water sources.

“However, the service had recognised the importance of monitoring water temperatures. Following our inspection, managers said they were going have the water system checked by a person with relevant expertise and had plans to attend specific training to gain further knowledge on legionella.”

The CQC also raised concern about the difficulties for people with limited mobility to access the surgery, the lack of information leaflets in other languages and the lack of an interpreting service.

READ MORE: When work could start to build new Royal Berkshire Hospital

The clinic is located on the first and second floor of a shared building and is only accessible by stairs.

This means the clinic is not accessible to all people, and there is potential for a patient being prevented from attending a booked appointment.

Managers told the CQC this had never happened and they would offer appointments at their other clinic in Goring if a patient made them aware of their mobility needs.

They also said there had not been a demand for leaflets in other languages, but they would consider providing leaflets if requested.

Management told the CQC they would ask a patient’s friend or family member to interpret should staff be unable to assist but the inspector said: “This did not give assurance that the correct information was being given”.

The CQC has asked the surgery to make changes to overcome these issues.