This practice is rated as Requires Improvement overall. (Previous rating July 2015 – Good)

The key questions at this inspection are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Requires Improvement

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? – Requires Improvement

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Staunton Surgery on 4 December 2018 as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

• The practice had undergone a significant change in practice leadership following the sudden retirement of their previous senior GP and loss of other GP partners. The practice had been saved from potential closure by the introduction of new GP partners.
• The practice remained without a confirmed registered manager despite notification letters from the Care Quality Commission having been sent to the practice in June 2018.
• The practice had overcome the loss of approximately 50% of its staff by recruiting more clinical and administrative staff, to maintain its patient care to a high standard.
• The practice had made changes to its reception and patient waiting area to improve patient confidentiality and protect staff duties.
• 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.
• Patients found the appointment system easy to use and reported that they were able to access care when they needed it.
• The practice did not have an active patient participation group but patient feedback was actively sought through surveys and Friends and Family Test questionnaires.
• There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.

The areas where the provider must make improvement are:

• Ensure all regulated activities are managed by an individual who is registered as a manager.
• Ensure persons employed in the provision of the regulated activity receive the appropriate support, training, professional development, supervision and appraisal necessary to enable them to carry out the duties.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Continue to improve the uptake for cervical screening to achieve the national target of 80%.
• Continue to improve arrangements for an active patient participation group.
• Continue to improve the uptake for childhood immunisations to achieve the national target of 90% or above in all four indicators.
• Continue to review exception reporting to be in line with local and national averages.
• Continue to review patient feedback regarding their experiences of accessing the practice via telephone or waiting times once at the practice.

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

Please refer to the detailed report and the evidence tables for further information.

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Staunton Surgery on 23 July 2015.

Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

• Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns, and to report incidents and near misses. Information about safety was recorded, monitored, appropriately reviewed and addressed.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance. Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned.
• 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.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and that 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.
• 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.

However there were areas of practice where the provider needs to make improvements.

Importantly the provider should :

• Ensure that significant events outcomes are fully documented and any learning from the events is discussed with all relevant staff.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice