Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We undertook a planned, comprehensive inspection of Port View Surgery on 13 January 2015. Port View Surgery provides primary medical services to people living in Saltash and surrounding villages in Cornwall. At the time of our inspection there were approximately 6580 patients. The practice provides services to a diverse population and is situated in a town centre location.

The practice comprises of a team of five GP partners (three male and two female) who hold managerial and financial responsibility for running the business. In addition there is a salaried GP, four registered nurses and two health care assistants. An administration team and a full time practice manager are employed in the running of the practice.

Patients who use the practice have access to community staff including district nurses, community psychiatric nurses, health visitors, physiotherapists, mental health staff, counsellors, chiropodist and midwives.

The practice is rated as good. An innovative, caring, effective, responsive and well-led service is

provided that meets the needs of the population it serves.

Our key findings were as follows:

There are systems in place to address incidents, deal with complaints and protect adults, children and other vulnerable people who use the service. Significant events are recorded and shared with multi professional agencies and there is evidence that lessons are learned and systems changed so that patient care is improved.

There are systems in place to support the GPs and other clinical staff to improve clinical outcomes for patients. According to data from the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QoF), which is the annual reward and incentive programme detailing GP practice

achievement results, outcomes for patients registered with this practice are above average for the locality. Patient care and treatment is considered in line with best practice national guidelines and staff are proactive in promoting good health.

The practice are pro-active in obtaining as much information as possible about their patients including carer status, family dynamics, dependency and any other outside influences which do or can affect their health and wellbeing. All the staff know the practice patients very well, are able to identify people in crisis and are professional and respectful when providing care and treatment.

The practice plans its services to meet the diversity of its patients. There are good facilities available, adjustments are made to meet the needs of the patients and there is an appointment system in place which enables good access to the service.

The practice has a clear vision and set of values which are understood by staff and made known to patients. There is a clear leadership structure in place, quality and performance are monitored and risks are identified and managed.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous inspection was in January 2015– the practice was rated as 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

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Port View Surgery on 17 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.
• Results of the July 2017 national GP patient survey showed the practice had performed better than CCG and national averages for example, 100% of patients who responded said they had confidence and trust in the last GP they saw; CCG - 97%; national average - 95%.
• Patients found the appointment system easy to use and reported that they were able to access care when they needed it. Patients were offered 15 minute appointments.
• There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.
• The practice actively encouraged and supported their Patient Participation Group to promote local Health initiatives, for example support for carers.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice