Archived: Cumbria Medical Services Limited

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Cumbria Medical Services on 24 May 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.

We have rated this practice as outstanding overall.

We found that:

• The service 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. Outcomes for people who used the service were consistently good.
• People were truly respected and vauled as individuals and were empowered partners in their care. Feedback from people who used the service was continually positive about the way staff treated people.
• Services were tailored to meet the needs of individual patients. They were delivered in a flexible way that ensured choice and continuity of care.
• The way the service was led and managed promoted the delivery of high-quality, person-centred care. There was strong collaboration across all staff and a common focus on engaging with patients and other services to improve quality of care and people’s experiences.
• The leadership drove continuous improvement and safe innovation was celebrated.

Patient feedback was extremely positive. Forty one people provided feedback about the service during the inspection.

We saw several areas of outstanding practice:

• People who used the service were active partners in their care and were consulted at each stage about where and when they would like to be seen. Patients told us they felt reassured and cared for by all staff at the service. As as a result, patient feedback about care at the service was highly positive. For example, between 98% and 100% of patients across the various areas (dermatology, minor surgery, ophthalmology, etc.) said they would recommend the service to family and friends.
• At the time of inspection the average waiting time was four weeks and for some clinics patients were often seen within two weeks, despite the service setting a target of seeing all patients within eight weeks. Extra clinics were scheduled if waiting times reached six weeks, or if patients would have to travel too far to attend. We checked appointment availability during the inspection and saw that there were dermatology and minor surgery appointments available within the following week.
• Due to the difficulties experienced in recruiting doctors in Cumbria, the service offered a bursary to local students who wanted to study medicine in order to encourage more people from Cumbria to train as medical professionals. They were also funding a dermatology diploma for a local GP to gain more experience in dermatology.

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 General Practice