Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Family Doctors on 26 January 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good for providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led care for all of the population groups it serves.

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 was in place for reporting and recording significant events.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance. Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and were involved in care and decisions about their treatment.
• Patients were positive about access to the service. They said they found it easy to make an appointment, there was continuity of care and urgent appointments were available on the same day as requested.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat and meet the needs of patients.
• The practice sought patient views how improvements could be made to the service, through the use of patient surveys, the NHS Friends and Family Test and the patient reference group.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff were supported by management.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

We saw areas of outstanding practice:

• The practice had good links with the local community. They had undertaken a coffee morning to focus on raising awareness of dementia and actively engaged with local groups in providing additional support for patients.
• The GP and nursing staff did ‘pop in’ home visits for patients who they may have had concerns about or were vulnerable, to ensure they were safe and receiving the care and support they needed.

However, there was one area of practice where the provider should make improvements:

• Maintain a record of all portable appliances which require testing and/or calibration to ensure all equipment is tested in line with health and safety guidance.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP

Chief Inspector of General Practice

We reviewed the information available to us about The Family Doctors on 1 May 2019. We did not find evidence of significant changes to the quality of service being provided since the last inspection. As a result, we decided not to inspect the surgery at this time. We will continue to monitor this information about this service throughout the year and may inspect the surgery when we see evidence of potential changes.