Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous inspection November 2014 – Good)

The key questions are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? - Good

As part of our inspection process, we also look at the quality of care for specific population groups. The population groups are rated as:

Older People – Good

People with long-term conditions – Good

Families, children and young people – Good

Working age people (including those recently retired and students – Good

People whose circumstances may make them vulnerable – Good

People experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia) - Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Hillview Medical Centre on 17 January 2018 as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

• The practice had clear systems to manage risk so that safety incidents were less likely to happen. The practice discussed incidents as soon as they happened, learned from them and improved their processes where necessary.
• The practice routinely reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was delivered in accordance with evidence- based guidelines.
• The practice worked collaboratively with other local practices and organisations to develop schemes which would benefit patients in the area. For example, the neighbourhood team, extended hours hubs and social prescribing (a way of linking patients in primary care with sources of support within the community).
• Staff involved and treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
• Patients told us that the appointment system was easy to use and said that they were able to access care when they needed it. Routine appointments were available within 48 hours.
• The practice had a computer software programme that automatically recorded future diary entries for patients who needed to be recalled for reviews.
• The practice had developed a protocol for prescribing end of life medicines which was going to be cascaded to other practices in Worcestershire.
• There was a focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out a comprehensive inspection of Hillview Medical Centre on 14 November 2014. The inspection team was led by a CQC inspector and included a GP specialist advisor, a practice manager specialist advisor and an Expert by Experience who had personal experience of using primary medical services.

We found Hillview Medical Centre provided a good service to patients in the key areas we looked at. This applied to patients across all age ranges and to patients with varied needs due to their health or social circumstances.

Our key findings were as follows:

• The practice had systems for monitoring and maintaining the safety of the practice and the care and treatment they provided to their patients.
• The practice was proactive in helping people with long term conditions to manage their health and had arrangements in place to make sure their health was monitored regularly.
• The practice was clean and hygienic and had arrangements for reducing the risks from healthcare associated infections.
• Patients felt that they were treated with dignity and respect. They felt that their GP listened to them and treated them as individuals.
• The practice had a well-established and well trained team of staff who had expertise and experience in a wide range of health conditions.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice