Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Ephedra Healthcare on 11 June 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Specifically, we found the practice to be good for providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led services. It was also good for providing services for older people, people with long-term conditions, people whose circumstances make them vulnerable, families, children and young people, working people and those who have recently retired and people experiencing poor mental health

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns, and to report incidents and near misses. Information about safety was recorded, monitored, appropriately reviewed and addressed.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance. Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned.
• The practice had policies and procedures in place to govern its activities.
• The practice was carrying out clinical audits to help them monitor and improve the quality of care given.
• 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.
• 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.

However there were areas of practice where the provider needs to make improvements.

Importantly the provider should

• Implement plans for a patient participation group (PPG) to seek feedback and views about the practice from their patients.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP 

Chief Inspector of General Practice