Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Gleadless Medical Centre on 21 June 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 with the exception of the frequency of basic life support training and the recording of the immunity status of clinical staff.
• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with 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. The practice actively reviewed complaints and improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints, concerns and patient feedback.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a GP and there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day through the GP telephone consultation system.
• 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 provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

We saw areas of outstanding practice:

• The clinical staff produced a specific individual care plan for patients who had long term conditions, for example, diabetes at the end of the consultation or annual review. This included clinical information such as cholesterol, blood pressure and blood glucose levels. It calculated the patient’s risk of cardiovascular disease and explained what this meant to them personally. It included medication information and an action plan of ways to control their condition. There was space at the back of the form for patients to write down things they wanted to discuss at their next appointment. Staff told us this gave the patient time to reflect on the results and the agreed treatment plan and encouraged patients to be more proactive in managing their condition.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Complete carpet and curtain cleaning every six months as specified in NHS National Patient Safety Agency specification guidance for cleanliness in primary care premises.

• Complete basic life support training more frequently for both clinical and non clinical staff as specified in the resuscitation council (UK) guidelines for staff working in primary care.

• Maintain a complete record of the immunity status of clinical staff as specified in the practice’s own Occupational Health policy and in the national Green Book (immunisations against infectious disease) guidance for healthcare staff.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

We reviewed the information available to us about Gleadless Medical Centre on 8 June 2019. We did not find evidence of significant changes to the quality of service being provided since the last inspection. As a result, we decided not to inspect the surgery at this time. We will continue to monitor this information about this service throughout the year and may inspect the surgery when we see evidence of potential changes.