Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Willow practice on 9 August 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 adequate facilities and was 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 one area of outstanding practice:

• One GP partner had developed an ill child assessment template on the clinical system which had been rolled out for use by all practices in the local Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG). The template contained information to help assess ill children including referral to hospital. The template was an educational tool for GPs and acted as a record of children’s well-being.

The areas where the provider should:

• Ensure appraisals are updated annually for all staff.
• Implement a program of quality improvement including clinical audit to drive improvement in patient outcomes.

• Consider providing access to a hearing loop for those patients hard of hearing.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice