Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced focussed inspection of Brookside Health Centre on 12 May 2016, to check that requirements made at our inspection in March 2015 had been met. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our previous inspection in March 2015 had found the practice was good overall. We found that the practice required improvement in the Effective domain due to breaches of regulations relating to safe delivery of services. The practice was good for Safe, Caring, Responsive and well led services.

At that inspection we told the practice that they must maintain records relating to the management of regulated activities. We saw that policies required updating and in one case there was no policy in relation the Disclosure and Barring service checking.

The practice now maintained records relating to the management of regulated activities. This means anything relevant to the planning and delivery of care and treatment. This included governance arrangements such as policies and procedures, service and maintenance records, audits, and reviews, purchasing, actions plans in response to risk and incidents. We saw that policies had been updated.

The provider ensured that information about Health and Safety was up to date, accurate and properly analysed.

The practice had effective communication systems to ensure that people who use the service and relevant staff within the practice know the results of reviews about the quality and safety of the service and any actions being taken. We saw that the practice now held clinical meetings and practice staff meetings on a regular basis.

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 focussed inspection of Brookside Health Centre on 12 May 2016, to check that requirements made at our inspection in March 2015 had been met. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our previous inspection in March 2015 had found the practice was good overall. We found that the practice required improvement in the Effective domain due to breaches of regulations relating to safe delivery of services. The practice was good for Safe, Caring, Responsive and well led services.

At that inspection we told the practice that they must maintain records relating to the management of regulated activities. We saw that policies required updating and in one case there was no policy in relation the Disclosure and Barring service checking.

The practice now maintained records relating to the management of regulated activities. This means anything relevant to the planning and delivery of care and treatment. This included governance arrangements such as policies and procedures, service and maintenance records, audits, and reviews, purchasing, actions plans in response to risk and incidents. We saw that policies had been updated.

The provider ensured that information about Health and Safety was up to date, accurate and properly analysed.

The practice had effective communication systems to ensure that people who use the service and relevant staff within the practice know the results of reviews about the quality and safety of the service and any actions being taken. We saw that the practice now held clinical meetings and practice staff meetings on a regular basis.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

We spoke with 10 patients who were attending the health centre during our inspection and a representative of the patient participation group. We also spoke with five of the seven GP partners, the practice manager, practice nurses, advanced nurse practitioners, and administrative staff. All patients were extremely happy with the service they received from the health centre and the staff. A triage system was in place which meant many issues could be dealt with by telephone rather than an appointment. Most patients were happy about this as it meant they did not have to attend the health centre. One patient said “if I don’t need to come here that’s good as I need to either get someone to give me a lift or pay for a taxi”. Patients said there was enough time at each consultation with diagnosis and treatment options fully discussed and explained to them. One said “If I need an appointment I can get one the same day and have never felt rushed when I see the doctor”.

All patients said they were treated appropriately and with dignity and respect. We found patients were protected against the risks of receiving care or treatment which was inappropriate or unsafe and were cared for by suitably qualified, skilled and supported staff. There were arrangements in place for staff to be able to recognise and report safeguarding children and vulnerable adults concerns to the relevant authorities. Patients were protected from the risk of infection because appropriate guidance and procedures were followed.

The provider had effective systems in place to identify, assess and manage risks to the health, safety and welfare of patients. Patients' views were sought and considered as part of the process to monitor the quality of the service provided.