This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous rating 12 2017 – Good Overall, but requires improvement for providing caring services.)

The key question we rated at this inspection is:

Are services caring? – Good

We carried out an announced focussed inspection at Abbey Medical centre on 10 December 2018. We carried out this inspection to follow up on areas where improvements could be made at our last inspection. At this inspection, we inspected the Caring key question only.

At this inspection we found:

• Patient feedback about the service was positive, and this included information obtained from various sources including national and practice patient surveys, friends and family test, and NHS choices
• The practice patient survey results had improved considerably since our last inspection, because of the practice taking positive actions to address areas of poor feedback
• The practice took feedback from patients seriously and acted on any identified areas for improvement.
• Staff involved and treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
• The practice had an active patient participation group, with a diverse membership. The PPG members indicated that they felt engaged and empowered by the practice to contribute to service developments.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Consider displaying information about patient feedback, such as survey results, and actions the practice had taken in response, in the practice.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice

Please refer to the detailed report and the evidence tables for further information.

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Abbey Medical Centre on 2 August 2016. The overall rating for the practice was good, however we rated the caring key question as requires improvement. The full comprehensive report on the 2 August 2016 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Abbey Medical Centre on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

We conducted a desk based focused inspection on 1 November 2017 to check that the provider had followed their action plan and to confirm that they now met legal requirements.

This report only covers our findings in relation to those requirements. (A desk based focused inspection means the provider was able to send us evidence of the action taken to address the issues previously found rather than visiting the practice).

Our key finding was as follows:

• Results from the most recent national GP patient survey showed the practice was still below local and national averages for some aspects of care.

The area where the provider should make improvement is:

• Monitor and work to improve patient survey results so that they are in line with national averages.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Abbey Medical Centre on 2 August 2016. At the practice’s previous inspection in May 2015, it was rated as good for responsive services, requires improvement for effective and caring services; and rated as inadequate for safe and well led services, resulting in an overall inadequate rating. The practice was therefore placed in special measures.

The August 2016 follow up inspection considered if the regulatory breaches in the previous inspection had been addressed and whether sufficient improvements had been made to bring the practice out of special measures. Overall the practice is now rated as good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management.
• 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 administrative inconsistencies regarding the practice’s system for logging the outcome of cervical smear test results.

• 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 told us that that they were involved in decisions about their care and treatment and that they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect.
• 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.
• 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.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Continue to monitor its national GP patient survey results, as these showed that patient satisfaction on how clinicians treated patients with care and concern and on how GPs involved patients in decisions about their care, were below national and local averages.

Following this inspection, I am taking this service out of special measures. This recognises the significant improvements made to the quality of care provided by this service.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP 

Chief Inspector of General Practice