Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Herrington Medical Centre on 19 January 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 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 a named GP and that there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• The practice had taken steps to ensure those patients who may suffer from poor access to primary care, were supported to have good access for example patients with learning disabilities and those living in care homes.
• 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 an area of outstanding practice:

• A visit from a local support agency for people with learning disabilities found good practice around supporting patients with learning disabilities to access annual health checks. The practice took a proactive approach to encourage these patients to access routine health checks and screening. For example, the practice told us when several patients with learning disabilities lived together in a small group home, the practice had arranged to go out and talk to them about regular health checks, such as cervical screening or bowel cancer checks. This helped these patients understand the importance of these checks and to understand how they would be carried out.

An area where the provider should make improvement is:

• Ensure the training needs of staff are identified on an ongoing basis, and personal development plans identify when staff need to undertake refresher training during the year to ensure training is timely.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice