Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Wallington Family Practice on 9 September 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 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. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and 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.
• 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.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

On the day of the inspection we spoke with seven people who used the service some of whom were on the patient participation group. We spoke with the practice manager, reception and clinical staff and we observed the reception area. We saw that there were some issues with the layout of the reception area but efforts were being made to address these.

Overall, people were happy with the service they received. Most people we spoke with had been coming to the practice for some time. One person said “We have had exemplary service and support from our GP... We appreciate the new facilities… They represent a massive improvement over the previous centre.” Another told us “There are some very good doctors, they are very approachable, they do listen and take time to explain things.” Two people told us they experienced problems getting through on the phone to make appointments at times.

People said they were involved in discussions about their care and treatment. They also liked the other services such as the X-ray service and blood testing being available in the same building. We looked at some records and spoke to health professionals. We saw people were given information and involved them in discussions about their care and treatment options. One person said we have been given lots of advice from nurses on “exercise, smoking and eating sensibly.”

We found that people were protected from the risk of abuse because procedures were in place at the practice for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults, and staff demonstrated that they were aware of these procedures.

The practice appeared clean and tidy on the day of the inspection. We found that there were appropriate infection control measures in use to reduce the risk of cross infection at the practice.

People were asked for their views and experiences about using the service and this had been used to consider and undertake changes and improvements that people wanted. The provider also undertook audits to monitor and review the quality and safety of the service provided.