Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Gables Surgery on 31 October 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• There was a system in place for reporting and recording significant events. All the staff we spoke with were aware of the process.
• Current evidence based guidance was accessible by clinical staff. 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. 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 GP and there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day. Some patients told us it was more difficult to access a female GP.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• There was a leadership structure and staff told us they felt supported by management. We saw that some policies and protocols were not updated in a timely manner. The storage of practice policies was not consistent. Some were available on the practice computer system, whilst others were only available in paper form.
• Newly recruited staff completed a health screening questionnaire. We saw that clinical staff were screened for hepatitis B immunity. Screening for immunity against other diseases such as chicken pox was not carried out.
• The practice sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The practice had recently moved into new purpose built premises. Staff told us that as a result of the move, and the need for meetings pertaining to new build issues, staff and clinical meetings were convened less frequently.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Establish a clear timetable of regular minuted meetings, including clinical meetings.

• Review and update policies and procedures in a timely way; and standardise the storage systems for these.

• Develop systems to establish staff immunity against measles mumps and rubella and chicken pox (varicella) in line with Public Health England guidelines.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice