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Safety and Standards
A private practice asks you to trust it with your health and your money. This page sets out what that trust rests on: who regulates us, who is responsible for you, what happens if something goes wrong, and what we have decided not to do. All of it rests on one principle: ethical, evidence-based medicine.
Regulation
Aarva’s registration with the Care Quality Commission, the independent regulator of health and social care in England, is in progress. We will publish our registration number and CQC listing here as soon as it is confirmed. The CQC inspects providers against fundamental standards of safety, effectiveness, care, responsiveness and leadership, and publishes its findings.
Every doctor at Aarva is registered with the General Medical Council and holds a current licence to practise. You can check any doctor’s registration on the GMC’s public register using the GMC numbers on our doctors page. Our doctors complete annual appraisal and five-yearly revalidation, as every practising doctor in the UK is required to.
What Doctor-Led Means Here
It means a doctor takes your history, examines you and decides what is appropriate, before any treatment is planned. It means the doctor who prescribes your treatment has seen you, in person, for that purpose.
Where members of our team who are not doctors deliver a treatment, they do so under the direct supervision of a doctor, to a plan the doctor has written. Nothing at Aarva is prescribed remotely or delivered to a protocol nobody has adapted to you.
Consent and Time to Decide
You receive your plan in writing, including the risks and side effects of anything we have recommended, and you take it away. When you return for treatment you go through consent with a doctor and sign only when you have had your questions answered. You can withdraw consent at any point, including on the day, without charge for the treatment you have not had.
If Something Goes Wrong
Every treatment carries some risk, and we tell you what the risks are before you consent. If you experience a complication or something does not feel right after treatment, contact us straight away on the number in your aftercare sheet, and you will be seen by a doctor. Out of hours, your aftercare sheet tells you what to do and when to seek emergency care. We record and review every complication, however minor, so that we learn from it.
If You Are Unhappy
Tell us. In the first instance speak to the doctor who treated you or to our Clinic Manager, Kam, on 0121 289 2777 or at complaints@aarva.net. We acknowledge every written complaint within three working days and aim to respond in full within twenty working days. If you are not satisfied with our response you can ask for it to be reviewed independently, and we will explain exactly how. You can also raise concerns with the Care Quality Commission at any time.
Insurance, Premises and Your Information
Aarva holds professional indemnity insurance covering every treatment we provide, and public liability insurance for the premises. Each doctor holds their own professional indemnity in addition.
Our treatment rooms are fitted out to the standards required for CQC registration. We follow national guidance on infection prevention and control, use single-use equipment wherever it exists, and audit our practice regularly.
Your medical record is held securely and shared only with your consent, or where the law requires it. You can ask to see your record at any time, and our privacy policy sets out the detail.
What We Have Decided Not to Do
- We do not treat anyone under eighteen for cosmetic purposes, and medical treatment for under-sixteens requires a parent or guardian.
- We do not prescribe without a consultation, and we do not name or promote prescription-only medicines on this website, in line with UK advertising rules.
- We do not offer any treatment without a doctor having assessed you first.
- We do not use before-and-after photographs without written consent, or to imply a result you will get.
Questions Before You Book?
Call us on 0121 289 2777 or email bookings@aarva.net, and a member of the team will help.