• Doctor
  • GP practice

Redlands

Joseph Locke Way, Crediton, EX17 3FD (01363) 727111

Provided and run by:
Redlands Health Partnership

Important: This service was previously registered at a different address - see old profile

Inspection summaries and ratings at previous address

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Background to this inspection

Updated 5 September 2018

New Valley Practice provides primary medical services to people living in the practice area and is located in Crediton with a dispensing branch surgery at Thorverton. A dispensing practice is where GPs are able to prescribe and dispense medicines directly to patients who live in a rural setting which is a set distance from a pharmacy.

New Valley Practice provides primary medical services to approximately 8934 patients. There is one registered location and a branch surgery:

New Valley PracticeNewcombes Medical CentreNewcombesCreditonDevonEX17 2AR

Thorverton Surgery (Branch with dispensary), The Bury, Thorverton Devon EX5 5NTOn 2 August 2018, we inspected the New Valley Practice at Crediton but did not revisit the branch surgery at Thorverton.

The practice population is in the seventh deprivation decile for deprivation. In a score of one to ten the lower the decile the more deprived an area is. There is a practice age distribution of male and female patients equivalent to national average figures. Average life expectancy for the area is similar to national figures with males living to an average age of 79 years and females to 83 years.

There is a team of four GP partners and three salaried GPs within the organisation. There are seven female and one male GPs. The team are supported by six qualified practice nurses, one health care assistant and a phlebotomist work across both practices. At Thorverton Surgery there are five dispensary staff working in the dispensary. There are additional administrative and reception staff managed by the deputy practice manager.

New Valley Practice is an approved training practice providing vocational placements for GPs, F2 doctors and year two medical students. One GP partner is approved to provide vocational training for GPs, and another GP partner approved to train second year post qualification doctors and medical students. A GP registrar was on placement at the time of the inspection but on leave.

Patients who use the practice have access to community staff including district nurses, community psychiatric nurses, health visitors, physiotherapists, mental health staff, counsellors, chiropodist and midwives.

The practice is open between Monday and Friday from 8.30am until 6pm, in line with local contracting arrangements. Extended hours are provided mid-week evenings after 6pm and every Saturday from 9 am until 11.15 am. Extended hours appointments are pre-bookable and preferably for patients that find it difficult to come to the surgery during normal working hours and cannot be made on the day. Outside of these hours a service is provided by another health care provider by patients dialling the national 111 service.

Routine appointments are available daily and are bookable up to six weeks in advance. Urgent appointments are made available on the day and telephone consultations also take place.

Overall inspection

Good

Updated 5 September 2018

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at New Valley Practice on 4 January 2018. The overall rating for the practice was good, with safe rated as requires improvement. The full comprehensive report on the January 2018 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for New Valley Practice on our website at .

This inspection was an announced focused inspection carried out on 2 August 2018 to confirm that the practice had carried out their plan to meet the legal requirement in relation to the breach in regulations that we identified in our previous inspection on 4 January 2018. This report covers our findings in relation to that requirement and also additional improvements made since our last inspection.

The overall rating for the practice remains unchanged as good. However, the safe domain is now rated as good.

Our key findings were as follows:

Systems, processes and records had been implemented providing appropriate assessment, monitoring, management and mitigation of risks to the health and safety of patients who use services:

  • The processes used for monitoring staff training and development was improved enabling effective monitoring of mandatory and role specific training could take place. For example, staff designated to carry out fire safety checks had received appropriate training for this role.
  • The practice used a consultant for all human resources matters. The recruitment process was reviewed and a checklist put in place to prompt consistency with pre-employment checks being carried out.
  • Installation checks had been carried out on new fire safety equipment. Ongoing monitoring checks were now being done regularly to ensure this equipment was in working order.
  • Patient Specific Directions (PSDs) were used and now include full details of the medicine and dose to be given and were pre-authorised by the lead prescribing GP.
  • Patient feedback was acted upon and an audit of patient waiting room times for an appointment was carried out.
  • The practice had increased the number of carers identified as needing support from 98 in January 2018 to 129 in August 2018.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP)

Chief Inspector of General Practice