Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Portway Family Practice on 10 May 2017. 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 and a system in place for reporting and recording significant events and incidents and the practice used the local reporting system to keep the clinical commissioning team up to date of all events.
• The practice had defined systems and processes in place to minimise risks to patient safety including an effective system in place to demonstrate what action had been taken with alerts received, this included alerts from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
• The practice had some immunisation records for staff, but we found there was no system in place to ensure all staff were up to date with routine immunisations. Since the inspection we have received evidence to show that a new policy had been implemented for the recording staff immunisation and all staff have had a review of their immunisation status and vaccines where appropriate. Risk assessments had been completed where required.
• The patient participation group was not currently active. Members of the group told us they needed support to pull the group together. We saw information on display to encourage new patients to join.
• The practice had adapted clinical templates following NICE guidelines to suit their practice population to ensure the needs of the patients were being met.
• Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills and knowledge to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• Patient feedback from CQC comment cards and patients we spoke with were positive about the care received.
• The practice encouraged staff to develop their roles and the practice manager had been nominated by the clinical commissioning group for a local ‘Rising Star’ award to highlight the dedication they had applied to the new role of manager.
• 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, which it acted on, but the participation group told us that meetings had not been regular and they felt they lacked leadership. There was a notice on display in the waiting area to encourage new members to join.
• The provider was aware of the requirements of the duty of candour.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

• Encourage patients to join the patient participation group and continue to support the current members in the group.
• Continue to identify carers in order to provide further support where needed.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice