Cornwall GP rated Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated the care provided at The Alverton Practice as Outstanding overall, following an inspection in January 2016.

Inspectors rated The Alverton Practice in Penzance, Outstanding for being effective, well-led and responsive to people’s needs and Good for being safe and caring.

A full report of the inspection has been published.

Professor Steve Field, Chief Inspector of General Practice said:

“I am delighted to highlight the exceptional service at The Alverton Practice, people are entitled to services which provide safe, effective, compassionate and high quality care. The GPs and staff at The Alverton Practice have demonstrated a real commitment to their patients. All of this hard work and dedication pays off in making a real difference for their patients – which is why we have found this practice to be Outstanding. I hope other practices will see this as a model for excellent care.”

Garry Higgins, Head of Inspection for General Practice, South Region, said:

“It is clear The Alverton Practice is providing an excellent service and is a real asset to the people living in this part of Cornwall.

“Staff demonstrated a comprehensive approach in managing the differing needs of their patients, proactively gathering feedback, and reflected these needs when planning and delivering services.

“There was a strong desire to learn at the practice, staff were engaged and committed to improving quality of care by learning from every opportunity and this was underpinned by their clear vision and strategy for the practice.

“This is a great example of what outstanding care looks like.”

Amanda Fisk, Director of Assurance and Delivery, NHS England South West, said:

“The hard work of the practice has been recognised, clearly identifying attributes of being responsive, effective and well led. Their pioneering ways to reach patients, such as establishing a branch practice to cater for the local fishing community, shows how innovative and unique their patient care is. I wish to commend them for their outstanding practice.”

The report highlights a number of areas of outstanding practice, including:

• The practice organised “flu parties” as part of their childhood flu vaccinations programme and had achieved the highest uptake for childhood vaccinations in the Clinical Commissioning Group area.
• The management responded to feedback actively. For example, to improve access to appointments, the practice provided a branch surgery in a local supermarket. This was highlighted by NHS England as pioneering.
• The Newlyn branch practice catered for the local fishing community and offered tide and weather dependent flexibility with appointments. Two of the GPs worked with the lifeboat crew.
• The unique approach of the multi-disciplinary team (MDT) meetings had been singled out locally and nationally, as a model of best practice.
• Patients were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and were involved in decisions about their care.

The Alverton Practice delivered outstanding, person-centred care that made medical services both accessible and innovative.

Ends

For further information please contact CQC Regional Engagement Officer Farrah Chandra on 07917 594 574 or, for media enquiries, call the press office on 020 7448 9401 during office hours. Journalists wishing to speak to the press office outside of office hours can find out how to contact the team here. (Please note: the duty press officer is unable to advise members of the public on health or social care matters). For general enquiries, please call 03000 61 61 61.