Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous inspection March 2015 – Good)

The key questions are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? - Good

As part of our inspection process, we also look at the quality of care for specific population groups. The population groups are rated as:

Older People – Good

People with long-term conditions – Good

Families, children and young people – Good

Working age people (including those recently retired and students – Good

People whose circumstances may make them vulnerable – Good

People experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia) - Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Parkgate Medical Practice on 5 December 2017. This was as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

• The practice was on a trajectory of improvement and had successfully recruited new staff within the last year. Some of the data in the report related to the previous governance and the practice were aware of this and had an action plan to monitor any issues of concern.

• 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.

• Some patients found the appointment system difficult to use. Some patients stated that it was difficult to get through to the practice by telephone. Most reported that they were able to access urgent care when they needed it, but had to wait too long for an appointment.

• There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

Ensure that GPs are provided with clinical supervision.

Have a system in place that ensures facilities are regularly maintained by the landlord.

Continue to monitor the action plan with regard to improving access to appointments.

Risk assess the emergency equipment.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out this comprehensive inspection on 4 March 2015.

Overall, we rated this practice as good.

Our key findings 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, reviewed and addressed.
• The practice provided a good standard of care, led by current best practice guidelines.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect.
• The buildings were clean, and the risk of infection was kept to a minimum.
• The practice provided effective care and support to people in vulnerable circumstances, such as homeless people and those from travelling communities.

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

While patients could access appointments, feedback from the patients showed that they were dissatisfied with the appointments system and the difficulties in obtaining appointments. Also not all clinical staff had received training on the Mental Capacity Act.

The provider should:

• Continue to explore solutions to improve patient satisfaction in the accessibility of appointments.
• Provide all necessary staff with training on the Mental Capacity Act.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice