Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at East Barnet Health Centre – Dr P Weston on 10 February, 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 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.

However there were areas of practice where the provider should make improvements:

• Develop a schedule of meetings for the Patient Participation Group (PPG).
• Ensure hand washing signs are posted in the toilets.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous rating February 2016 – Good).

The key questions at this inspection are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? - Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive at East Barnet Health Centre as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

That the provider had effective governance processes in place, risk was well managed and there was evidence of improvements to patient care.

• The practice had clear systems to manage risk so 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 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 they were able to access care when they needed it.
• There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.

We saw one example of outstanding practice:

• The practice was working in collaboration with eight local practices, social services, mental health team, palliative care team, Age UK, a frailty nurse and a consultant geriatrician as a Care and Health Integrated Network (CHIN). The CHIN aims to reduce unplanned admissions and improve the care of its frail elderly population as well as patients on the palliative care register. The CHIN aims to increase the use of patient-specific care plans using the Co-Ordinate My Care (CMC) platform.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGPChief Inspector of General Practice

Please refer to the detailed report and the evidence tables for further information.