Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous inspection 4 November 2014 – Good)

The key questions are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? - Good

As part of our inspection process, we also look at the quality of care for specific population groups. The population groups are rated as:

Older People – Good

People with long-term conditions – Good

Families, children and young people – Good

Working age people (including those recently retired and students) – Good

People whose circumstances may make them vulnerable – Good

People experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia) - Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Arran Medical Centre on 10 January 2018 as part of our inspection programme

At this inspection we found:

• The practice had clear systems to manage risk so that safety incidents were less likely to happen. We saw that when incidents did happen, the practice discussed these at clinical meetings and learned from them and improved their processes as a result.
• The practice routinely reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was delivered according to evidence- based guidelines.

• Staff involved and treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect and the National GP Patient survey results reflected this for example,

- 99% of patients who responded said the nurse was good at listening to them compared to the CCG average of 92% and the national average of 91%.

- 98% of patients who responded said they found the receptionists at the practice helpful compared to the CCG and national averages of 87%.

• In addition comment cards we received reported high levels of satisfaction with the services at the practice and patients we spoke with were also provided positive feedback.
• Patients found the appointment system easy to use and reported that they were able to access care when they needed it. However we did receive feedback that it was sometimes difficult to get through to the practice on the telephone and survey results reflected this.
• There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation. This is a training practice and the GP registrars (a GP Registrar is a qualified doctor who is training to become a GP through a period of working and training in a practice) we spoke with felt well supported.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Continue to monitor patient satisfaction rates in particular in relation to access to appointments.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We completed a comprehensive inspection at Arran Medical Centre on 10 November 2014. We found the practice to be good in the five key areas that we looked at and gave the practice an overall rating of good.

Our key findings were as follows:

• Patients were protected from the risk of abuse and avoidable harm. The staff we spoke with understood their roles and responsibilities and there were policies and procedures in place for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.

• Infection control audits were completed to monitor compliance with infection prevention and control standards. The premises were clean and tidy and records were kept to ensure standards were maintained.

• Patients received care and treatment which achieved good outcomes, promoted a good quality of life and was based on the best available evidence. Systems were in place to review the care needs of those patients with complex needs or those in vulnerable circumstances.

• Patients told us that the GP listened to what they had to say and discussed their health needs with them. Staff were seen to be caring and treated patients with dignity and respect.

• The practice worked collaboratively with other agencies and regularly shared information to ensure good, timely communication of changes in patients care and treatment.

• Staff were aware of their roles and responsibilities and worked well as a team. There was evidence of good management support systems in place.

However, there were also areas of practice where the provider should make improvements:

• The practice should ensure that documentary evidence is available to demonstrate the action taken to address any significant events, incidents or accidents.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice