Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Monella & Partners – Medwyn Surgery on 9 December 2015. Overall the practice is rated as outstanding.

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.
• 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 and easy to understand.
• 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 several areas of outstanding practice :

The practice was extremely pro-active in supporting the well-being of its patients by engaging with and participating in numerous community support groups. The culture of the practice focused on community engagement and being central to community life. This culture benefited the emotional and physical well-being of the patients. In addition we noted many individual acts of care, compassion and kindness towards patients, by members of the practice team, often in their own time.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Establish systems and processes to facilitate the efficient on-going monitoring of staff training and registration with professional bodies.

• Ensure that all formal documents are dated or version controlled and records maintained to facilitate efficient review of such documents.

• Ensure that infection control was addressed as part of the practice induction programme for all staff.

• Establish robust systems and processes to ensure that all necessary and relevant recruitment checks are undertaken for all staff prior to employment.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice