Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dearne Valley Group Practice on 14 March 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Patients told us 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 and easy to understand.

• Patients said they found it difficult to speak to a receptionist by telephone. The practice manager told us this was a long standing problem and the practice had tried to resolve this in several different ways, such as introducing an automated appointment system. They were working with the owner of the building to improve telephone access and were looking into other ways of providing information to patients.

• Patients were able to make appointments on line and through the automated appointment system which gave them a choice of GP. There was a sit and wait system with one of the GPs most afternoons.
• Patients we spoke with told us there was access to urgent appointments available the same day and that there was continuity of care.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The registered provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

The practice was caring and staff went the

extra mile for their patients. We saw three areas of outstanding practice to evidence this:

The practice and branch site both had a palliative care co-ordinator. When patients with palliative care needs had been identified, they were allocated a palliative care co-ordinator depending on which of the sites they preferred. They were then given a letter with a photograph of their palliative care co-ordinator on it and a direct telephone number. This was to enable easy access to discuss any care needs, order prescriptions or for advice. This was set up following a complaint that palliative care information could not be found quickly.

The practice had organised community events, such as a coffee morning at a local community centre to raise awareness of health and wellbeing, long term conditions and benefits advice. This had a good response and one patient told us how the advice they received that morning helped them to claim attendance allowance for an older relative. They also organised a baby first aid event with St John’s Ambulance. Both of these events were open to the whole community. The staff held a baking sale to raise money for charity and there were further events being planned for the future.

One significant event discussed a situation where the district nurses could not gain access to a house where a patient was living. One of the GPs and another member of staff investigated and emergency services were called. The patient needed urgent social care, this was arranged whilethe GP bought essential groceries. The staff made the patient comfortable and visited the following day before an urgent package of care was put in place.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

To develop and implement an action plan to address the problems for patients with telephone access to the surgery so that they can be assured that patients are able to contact the surgery whenever necessary.

To review the complaints policy to include documentation of responses where complaints have been responded to verbally.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice