Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Riverside Medical Practice on 10 May 2016. Breaches of the legal requirements were found.

• The practice’s systems, processes and practices did not always keep patients safe and safeguarded from abuse.

• Risks to patients were not always assessed and well managed.

• Governance arrangements were not always effectively implemented.

Following the comprehensive inspection, the practice wrote to us to tell us what they would do to meet the legal requirements in relation to the breaches.

We undertook this focussed inspection on 15 November 2016, to check that the practice had followed their plan and to confirm that they now met the legal requirements. At our focussed follow-up inspection on 15 November 2016, the practice provided records and information to demonstrate that the requirements had been met. This report only covers our findings in relation to those requirements. You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Riverside Medical Practice on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Riverside Medical Practice on 10 and 16 May 2016. Overall the practice is rated as requires improvement.

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 for reporting and recording significant events.
• The practice’s systems, processes and practices did not always keep patients safe and safeguarded from abuse.

• Risks to patients were not always assessed and well managed.

• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with 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. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and 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.
• Governance arrangements were not always effectively implemented.
• 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.

The areas where the provider must make improvements are:

• Ensure national guidance on infection prevention and control are followed.
• Revise medicines management to ensure that blank prescription forms and pads are tracked through the practice, Department of Health guidance is followed when storing vaccines and blood thinning medicines are dispensed safely.
• Revise risk assessment and management to include all infection control, control of substances hazardous to health and fire risks.

• Revise governance processes and ensure that all documents used to govern activity are up to date.

In addition the provider should:

• Consider recording dispensary near misses to help reduce the risk of repeating errors in the future.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice