Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr D Pal & Dr M Pal on 16 February 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 a 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 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 and easy to understand.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with GP with urgent appointments available the same day.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• There was a leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

We saw one area of outstanding practice:

• The practice worked with the community link worker (CLW). The CLW took referrals for patients who need extra help, but not necessarily medical help.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

• Ensure that records are kept of clinical updates and information passed to locum GPs.
• Ensure that information on the training of locum GPs is recorded and regularly reviewed.
• Provide the prescribing nurse with a local formulary to support their service delivery.
• Regularly review policies and procedures.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr D. Pal & Dr M. Pal on 8 January 2019 as part of our inspection programme.

At the last inspection in May 2018 we rated the practice as good for the key questions effective, caring and responsive; and requires improvement for safe and well led. The overall rating was requires improvement. This was because:

• The practice did not ensure care and treatment was provided in a safe way to patients.
• There were not effective systems and processes to ensure good governance in accordance with the fundamental standards of care.

At this inspection, we found that the provider had satisfactorily addressed these areas.

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

• what we found when we inspected both the main and branch surgery
• information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
• information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

We have now rated this practice as good overall and good for all population groups.

We found that:

• The practice provided care in a way that kept patients safe and protected them from avoidable harm.
• Patients received effective care and treatment that met their needs.
• Staff dealt with patients with kindness and respect and involved them in decisions about their care.
• The practice organised and delivered services to meet patients’ needs. Patients could access care and treatment in a timely way.
• The way the practice was led and managed promoted the delivery of high-quality, person-centre care.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice