Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Rawcliffe and Partners, also known as Honley Surgery on 18 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. Staff were encouraged to report and record significant events and we saw that learning from this was shared with the team.

• Safeguarding was a priority for the practice and we saw evidence that best practice was followed. Staff knew how to recognise the signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children and any safeguarding concerns were discussed at a multi-disciplinary meeting each month.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following local and national care pathways and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance.
• Services were planned to respond to the needs of the patient population. For example, patients could attend a nurse led anticoagulation clinic for which the practice was a hub. Previously patients had to attend the local hospital which had involved a lengthy bus journey for those patients dependent on public transport.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
• Patients said they were treated with kindness, compassion and that GPs and nursing staff were good at treating them with care and concern. We saw that urgent appointments were available the same day.
• 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.
• 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 and the virtual Patient Participation Group (PPG), which it acted on.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

We saw areas of outstanding practice:

The surgery actively supported a charity which it set up 15 years ago to provide transportation for patients to three local GP practices. The Holme Valley Transportation scheme was available to all patients, free of charge that needed this service including older people, young parents and those living in isolated areas. The practice organised regular fundraising events and engaged the local community in the service. Figures showed up to 120 patients used the transport each month who would otherwise struggle to access health services. Whilst we saw that the practice had the capacity to offer home visits, they were aware of the social isolation faced by some patients who preferred to use the transport to visit the practice when they could.

The practice had a dedicated “dosette box team” who liaised with the GPs, pharmacy and the patient to ensure that patients were receiving the medication they required in a way that they could manage. The team would also review patients that no longer needed this service to reduce costs.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

The provider should undertake infection prevention and control audits on a regular basis.

The provider should review their arrangements for clinical audit at the practice. Clinical audit should be clearly linked to patient outcomes, monitored for effectiveness and be comprised of two or more cycles to monitor improvements to patients.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice