Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Weir & Partners on 25 November 2015. Overall the practice is rated as outstanding. This includes all patient groups.

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 understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns and report incidents and near misses. All opportunities for learning from internal and external incidents were maximised.

• 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 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. We found the premises to be clean and tidy.
• 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.
• The practice had signed up to the compassion in practice campaign.

We saw several areas of outstanding practice:

• The practice identified alternative funding opportunities to fund additional services such as exercise classes, counselling and acupuncture.

• The practice was aware of the poor public transport network in Minchinhampton and responded by arranging transport for patients with mobility issues.

• The practice had won a quality award from the Primary Care Respiratory Society for the work it had undertaken to improve staff training, equipment and patient pathway from diagnosis to treatment at the practice.

• The practice funded additional training for staff, for example, masters in science in respiratory care for the senior nurse practitioner, masters in science in health informatics and in management for the practice manager.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

This practice is rated as outstanding overall. (Previous inspection November 2015 – Outstanding)

The key questions are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Outstanding

Are services well-led? - Outstanding

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Weir & Partners (which is also known locally as Minchinhampton Surgery) on 24 April 2018 as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

• The practice had clear systems to manage risk so that safety incidents were less likely to happen. When incidents did happen, the practice learned from them and improved their processes.
• The practice routinely reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was delivered according to evidence- based guidelines.
• Staff involved and treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
• Patients found the appointment system easy to use and reported that they were able to access care when they needed it.
• People’s individual needs and preferences were central to the planning and delivery of tailored services. The services were flexible, provide choice and ensure continuity of care.
• The involvement of other organisations and the local community was integral to how services were planned and ensures that services meet people’s needs.
• There was a proactive approach to understanding the needs of different groups of people and to deliver care in a way that meets these needs and promotes equality.
• Leaders had an inspiring shared purpose and strived to deliver and motivate staff to succeed.
• Feedback from patients about the service they received was positive.
• There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.
• Results from the National GP Survey showed the practice was performing above the local and national averages in all areas surveyed.

We saw several areas of outstanding practice:

• The practice involved patients who were also carers in promoting good outcomes for those groups of patients.
• The patient participation group recognised there was poor public transport network in Minchinhampton and responded by working in collaboration with practice to deliver a volunteer transport service for patients.

The area where the practice should make improvements:

• Continue to monitor exception reporting to improve patient outcomes.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGPChief Inspector of General Practice