Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Beech House Medical Practice on 18 November. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• The practice is situated in a purpose built health centre. The practice was clean and had good facilities including disabled access, translation services and a hearing loop.
• The practice had recently altered the staffing structure and had just recruited a pharmacist.
• There were systems in place to mitigate safety risks including analysing significant events and safeguarding.
• The practice was aware of and had systems in place to ensure compliance with the requirements of the duty of candour. (The duty of candour is a set of specific legal requirements that providers of services must follow when things go wrong with care and treatment).
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered in line with current legislation.
• Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available. The practice sought patient views about improvements that could be made to the service and acted, where possible, on feedback.
• Staff told us they felt valued, worked well together as a team and all felt supported to carry out their roles.

There were outstanding elements of practice including:-

• As a result of a complaint, the practice had built a bespoke website. The website was colour coded for information for specific groups of patients making it easier for patients to navigate. In addition, the practice had the corresponding information available in the waiting room by having the same colour coded scheme on separate notice boards.

• The practice had developed a patient information booklet specifically for teenagers covering a wide range of health issues that they may not wish to ask about in person.

• The practice had an information board for patients covering varying types of mental health issues. The information was set out by asking the patient what type of issue they had and then giving the patient a link to where they could access further information or self- help support.

However, the practice should

• Develop a protocol for medication reviews.
• Update the complaints practice procedure and patient information leaflet to reflect that patients can complain to NHS England as an alternative, if they do not wish to directly complain to the practice.
• Analyse trends from significant events.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice