The Care Quality Commission
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Aspen Medical Practice

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Horton Road, Gloucester, Gloucestershire, GL1 3PX (01452) 337733

Provided and run by:
Aspen Medical Practice

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

All Inspections

16 December 2020

During an inspection looking at part of the service

In light of the current Covid-19, CQC has looked at ways to fulfil our regulatory obligations, respond to risk and reduce the burden placed on practices by minimising the time inspection teams spend on site.

In order to seek assurances around potential risks to patients, we are currently piloting a process of remote working as far as practicable. This practice consented to take part in this pilot and the evidence in the report was gathered without entering the practice premises.

We carried out the remote elements of inspection through the GP focused inspection pilot (GPFIP) on 16 December 2020. This was in response to feedback we received from the public which suggested an increased risk to patients at the practice. From information and potential concerns considered by CQC there were areas identified that required investigation and review.

We carried out an announced remote regulatory assessment with Aspen Medical Centre on 16 December 2020. This report was created as part of pilot work which looked at new and innovative ways of fulfilling CQC regulatory obligations and responding to risk in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was conducted with the consent of the provider. Unless the report says otherwise, we obtained the information in it without visiting the provider. From information and potential concerns considered by CQC there were areas identified that required investigation and review. These fell in the safe, effective and well led domains.

This inspection was unrated.

We found that:

  • Patients diagnosed with Diabetes Dementia received appropriate care and treatment.
  • The practice did not always have policies to give guidance to staff.

Whilst we found no breaches of regulations, the provider should:

  • Ensure policies which give guidance to staff are embedded in practice.
  • Introduce quality assurance processes for the summarisation of new patient notes.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP

Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care

14 February 2020

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Aspen Medical Practice on 14 February 2020 as part of our inspection programme.

We carried out an inspection of this service as a follow up to our last inspection in March 2019, to follow up on concerns and breaches of regulation identified at that time and to ensure that improvements had been made and patients were receiving safe care and treatment.

When we last inspected Aspen Medical Practice in March 2019 it had been rated as Requires Improvement overall; Requires Improvement for providing safe and responsive services; Good for providing effective, caring and well led services and Requires Improvement for all the population groups.

This inspection focused on the following key questions:

  • Are services safe?
  • Are services effective?
  • Are services caring?
  • Are services responsive?
  • Are services well led?

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

  • what we found when we inspected
  • information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
  • information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

We have rated Aspen Medical Practice as Good overall; Good for providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led services and Good for all the population groups because:

  • At this inspection, we found all the areas of concern from the last inspection had been addressed and improved.
  • We found that the practice had successfully coped with a 20,000 patient increase in their list size due to the recent mergers of three local practices
  • Patients’ needs were assessed, and care and treatment was delivered in line with current legislation, standards and evidence-based guidance supported by clear pathways and tools.
  • The practice had a comprehensive programme of quality improvement activity and routinely reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care provided.
  • Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care, support and treatment.
  • Staff worked together and with other organisations to deliver effective care and treatment.
  • There was compassionate, inclusive and effective leadership at all levels. This included working with and supporting the practice Patient Participation group (PPG).
  • The practice had a clear vision and set of values that prioritised quality and sustainability.
  • The practice had a culture that drove high quality sustainable care.
  • There were clear responsibilities, roles and systems of accountability to support good governance and management.
  • There were clear and effective processes for managing risks, issues and performance.
  • We provided the practice with Care Quality Commission feedback cards prior to the inspection and we received 26 completed cards. Patients were extremely positive about the practice staff, their experiences, and the care and treatment they received.

Although we did not find any beaches of regulation at this inspection, we did see some areas where the provider should make improvements. These are:

  • Continue monitoring the uptake of cervical screening in line with national guidance.
  • Continue monitoring exception reporting to support patients with long term conditions.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP

Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care

13 March 2019

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Aspen Medical Practice on 13 March 2019 as part of our inspection programme.

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

  • What we found when we inspected.
  • Information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
  • Information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

Overall the practice is rated as requires improvement.

We rated the practice as requires improvement for providing safe services because:

  • There was not a written protocol for reception staff to advise them on what to do should a patient become acutely unwell and they had not been given guidance on identifying those patients or those who may deteriorate.
  • Patient Specific Directions to authorise health care assistants to administer medicines such as vaccines were not issued in line with national guidance.

We rated the practice as requires improvement for providing responsive services including all population groups because:

  • Sufficient actions had not been implemented to improve telephone access to the practice.

We rated the practice as good for providing effective, caring and well-led services because:

  • The practice provided care in a way that kept patients safe and protected them from avoidable harm.
  • Patients received effective care and treatment that met their needs.
  • Staff dealt with patients with kindness and respect and involved them in decisions about their care.
  • The way the practice was led and managed promoted the delivery of high-quality, person-centre care.

The areas where the provider must make improvements are:

  • Ensure that care and treatment is provided in a safe way.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

  • Review systems in place, so that the monitoring of prescription forms is accurate, and management oversight of the processing of safety alerts is easier.
  • Implement systems so that staff in advance roles receive regular reviews of their prescribing and appropriate clinical supervision.
  • Continue to monitor and implement actions to improve performance in relation to the Quality Outcomes Framework indicators.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP

Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care

27 October 2015

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Heathville Road Surgery and the branch surgery at Tuffley Surgery, Warwick Avenue, Gloucestershire on the 27 October 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Specifically, we found the practice to be good for providing safe, well led, effective, caring and responsive services. It was also rated as good for providing services for all of the population groups.

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

  • We found patients needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance.
  • Patients told us 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 there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments always available the same day.
  • Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
  • Staff worked cohesively as a team and 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.
  • Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned.
  • There was a strong leadership structure and staff felt supported by management.
  • The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted upon.
  • The leadership, governance and culture within the practice were used to drive and improve the delivery of high-quality person-centred care.

We saw an area of outstanding practice:

The practice participated in innovative pilot programmes such as the Choice Plus project which

increased patient access to urgent care appointments and chronic illness management.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice