Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Cross Road Surgery on 10 March 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 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.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and that 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.

We saw one area of outstanding practice:

The practice is part of the Weymouth Elderly Care Service (WECS) which supports patients who are resident in nursing homes plus any other housebound patients. The practice funds this service along with four other local GP practices. WECS consists of a dedicated GP and nurse practitioner who ensure that every patient has a weekly review plus a care plan in place. Feedback collated from the nursing homes involved shows an improvement in the quality of care since WECS started in April 2015. 88% of nursing homes find it significantly easier to get queries answered and patients reviewed compared to 37% prior to WECS. 88% of nursing homes feel their patient receive significantly better care, compared to 69% prior to WECS.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

• Ensure that procedures for the storage of emergency medicines are consistent and well publicised to staff.
• Review the process for involving the whole staff in meetings and decisions about the practice.
• Review the procedure for proactively offering health checks to vulnerable groups, such as carers, people with learning disabilities and patients with mental health problems.

The practice should review its processes for proactively identifying patients who may also be carers and ensure they receive appropriate support.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice