Church Street Surgery

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We looked for evidence that the service involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

We rated this key question as Good.

This service scored 85 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Kindness, compassion, and dignity was embedded within the service provided by staff at the practice. The National GP Patient Survey Data demonstrated that 83% of respondents felt they were treated with care and concern during their last appointment, which was in line with the national average of 86%. Data shared from the NHS ‘Friends and Family Test’ showed that the vast majority of patient experience about the practice was highly positive. 95% of patients surveyed said they found their care at the practice to be either ‘Very Good’ or ‘Good.’

During the site visit, we observed staff being helpful and polite to patients and staff provided us with evidence of examples which demonstrated meaningful empathy, understanding, and sensitivity to patients’ individual circumstances. Compassion for vulnerable people including the homeless and people with drug and alcohol addictions, was highly evident. Staff went over and above to be flexible, adaptive and opportunistic to help these patients. Leaders told us they strived to create a ‘family atmosphere’ within the practice amongst staff and told us the caring workplace atmosphere induced highly positive staff and patient interactions.

The practice engaged in multiple charity fundraising activities regularly throughout the year such as the Kemp Hospice, Age UK, MIND, and the Teddy Bear Trust. In addition, staff made regular food bank donations.

For the relatives of patients who have died, clinicians told us they expressed their condolences to family members and sent bereavement cards.

Arrangements were in place to promote patients’ privacy within the practice. For example, additional rooms were available if patients needed to talk with reception staff in private; chaperones were available for patient appointments; and privacy curtains were installed in clinical rooms.

The practice had appointed a ‘Carers Champion’ as a point of contact and support for patients who were carers. The Carers Champion’s role involved signposting carers to relevant community, voluntary, and statutory services; ensuring clinical codes for carers were applied to the clinical records; attending Wyre Forest Health Partnership meetings to share information and learning; and providing updates for staff.

The practice treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. Personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristic needs were understood and met. Staff had completed equality and diversity training. To accommodate individual needs, patient requirements were recorded on the patient record such as communication needs such as translation and interpretation support, which included British Sign Language, could be organised. For patients that had difficulty using technology, information could be printed on paper if this was preferred.

We discussed with staff how they responded to changes in people’s preferred gender, name and title. Staff explained any changes were patient led. The practice had a Transgender protocol in place and staff dealt with patient preferences effectively and sensitively.

The practice promoted people’s independence and supported them to make decisions about their care, treatment and wellbeing. They provided patients with information and guidance to enable them to make informed decisions about their care.National GP Patient Survey data showed that 95% of the respondents felt involved as much as they wanted to be in decisions about their care and treatment during their last general practice appointment, which was in line with the national average of 91%. 64% of respondentswere offered a choice of time or day when they last tried to make a general practice appointment, which was above the national average of 54%. Staff ensured that all necessary information was accessible between services to ensure patient preferences were met to support and maximise patient’s independence and outcomes from care and treatment.

The practice listened to and understood patients’ needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to patients’ needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress. Staff we spoke with knew how to respond when a patient needed urgent attention and knew the processes to follow to ensure emergency support was given. For example, staff had undertaken sepsis training and recognising very ill patients over the telephone. The practice had an ‘Emergency Process,’ ‘Emergency Protocol,’ and a ‘Red Flag’ information sheet for reception to refer to which outlined symptoms of sepsis, chest pain, stroke and meningitis.

There was a system for clinical appointment triage that ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. The duty GP reviewed patient’s queries and various appointments were available such as face to face, online or by telephone.

Workforce wellbeing and enablement was a top priority for leaders at the practice. Staff were exceptionally well supported through regular supervision and appraisals, strong teamwork, and opportunities for learning, development, and career progression. Wellbeing initiatives were well established and widely accessed, contributing to a resilient and motivated workforce.

Leaders demonstrated an exceptional, visible, and sustained commitment to creating a highly supportive, inclusive, and empowering environment where staff feel genuinely valued and able to thrive. This is strongly evidenced in the recent NHS General Practice Staff Survey. Survey results were above national averages and overwhelmingly positive across all domains, including ‘compassionate culture;’ ‘compassionate leadership;’ being ‘recognised and rewarded;’ having ‘a voice that counts;’ and ‘morale.’

Leaders embedded staff wellbeing into daily practice. All staff were encouraged to meet together for coffee breaks; arrange social events together; and participate in charity and fundraising activities. Leaders told us staff participating in charity and fundraising activities promoted stronger teamwork; encouraged inclusion; boosted morale; built staff trust; and reduced stress.

Staff mental health was of high importance to leaders, and the practice Site Lead had been trained as a Mental Health First Aider. A Mental Health First Aider is a trained person who acts as a first point of contact for someone experiencing mental health issues or emotional distress, providing initial support and signposting them to professional help. The practice had organised a mental health drop-in session for staff where they could participate in activities; ask questions; take away information; and have a one-to-one session with a Mental Health First Aider. Shortly after our site visit the practice had arranged another mental health awareness event and raised money for MIND charity.

The Wyre Forest Health Partnership had also recently invited staff across all the practices to attend a talk on the menopause given by one of the GPs. The talk was designed to provide information about the menopause; symptoms and management; lifestyle advice; and where to get support.

As part of our assessment, we asked staff for their feedback about the practice. All of the staff we spoke with during our site visit gave highly positive feedback. Staff expressed they enjoyed working at the practice and there were good relationships amongst colleagues. In addition, we received written feedback from 10 members of staff. 8 staff members reported highly positive experiences of working in the practice, stating they felt very supported. 2 members of staff stated they felt additional staff, modernisation of the building, and more appointments would improve the practice; more communication would be helpful; but they mostly felt supported.

Overall, the highly positive culture in the practice fostered a resilient, motivated, and engaged workforce, directly enabling the delivery of innovative, high-quality, and consistently compassionate care to patients.