Archived: Dr Majid Azeb Also known as Southowram Surgery

Updated 9 July 2015

Dr Majid Azeb operates from Southowram Surgery based within the outskirts of Halifax. The practice provides Personal Medical Services (PMS) under a contract with NHS England. It serves a population of approximately 2761 patients who are predominantly English speaking and from different socio-economic backgrounds.

There is one male and one female GP at the practice who are supported by a practice nurse and a health care assistant. The practice has an experienced administration team, consisting of a practice manager and three receptionists.

Dr Azeb is a GP trainer and honorary lecturer at the University of Leeds, as well as a governing body member of Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and a member of the Local Medical Committee (LMC).

Southowram Surgery offers a range of appointments between 8.30am and 6.30pm every weekday. It has extended hours from 6.30pm to 7.45pm on Mondays. When the practice is closed out of hours cover is provided by Local Care Direct and the NHS 111 service.

A wide range of services are available at the practice which include vaccinations and immunisations, cervical screening, child health surveillance and management of long term conditions. For example, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and diabetes.

Updated 9 July 2015

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Majid Azeb (Southowram Surgery) on 8 April 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Specifically we rated the practice as good in providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led care for all of the population groups it serves.

Our key findings were as follows:

• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a preferred GP, there was continuity of care and urgent appointments were available the same day.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance. Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned.
• Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and were involved in care and decisions about their treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand. Complaints were addressed in a timely manner and the practice endeavoured to resolve complaints to a satisfactory conclusion.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• Staff 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.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
• The practice had a number of policies and procedures in place and held regular governance meetings.
• The practice had good systems in place to ensure regular and prompt follow up for patients believed to be in circumstances that made them vulnerable or at risk.

We saw the following areas of outstanding practice:

• The practice manager and health care assistant had trained to be a Dementia Friend and could provide additional support to patients, carers and other practice staff as the need arose.
• The practice had good follow up care for the families of bereaved patients. A sympathy card was sent and an appointment for bereavement support was offered.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 9 July 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of people with long term conditions. The practice had a GP led approach to long term conditions, supported by the nursing staff. There were structured annual reviews in place to check the health and medications needs of patients were being met. Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed. Staff worked with relevant health and social care professionals to deliver a multidisciplinary package of care. For example, newly diagnosed patients with diabetes were referred to specialist diabetic support services such as DESMOND. This is a programme of self-management and education for people who are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

Updated 9 July 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of families, children and young people. There were systems in place to identify and follow up children living in disadvantaged circumstances and who were at risk. For example, children and young people who had a high number of A&E attendances. The practice provided sexual health support and contraception, maternity services and childhood immunisations. Children between the ages of two and four were offered the nasal spray vaccine in line with the seasonal influenza programme. Appointments were available outside of school hours and the premises were suitable for children and babies. The practice told us all young children were prioritised and the under-fives were seen on the same day as requested.

Updated 9 July 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of older people. Nationally reported data showed that outcomes for patients were good for conditions commonly found in older people. All patients over 75 years of age had a named GP and were offered an annual health check. The practice was responsive to the needs of older people, offering home visits and longer appointments. The practice worked closely with other health care professionals, such as the district nursing team and community matron, to ensure housebound patients received the care they needed. Patients 75 and over who were socially isolated and felt lonely were signposted to the local Staying Well Ageing Better service, which specifically targeted loneliness in the elderly.

Updated 9 July 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of working age people (including those recently retired and students). The practice had extended hours, including pre-bookable early morning appointments. The practice was proactive in offering online services as well as a full range of health promotion and screening which reflected the needs for this age group. For example, patients who would benefit from social engagement and were aged 50 and over were signposted to a local service known as SOFA (Southowram over fifties). All new patients aged 16 years or over were offered a health check. The practice also offered urgent care for patients who worked or studied away from home (out of area registrations).

Updated 9 July 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of people experiencing poor mental health, including people with dementia. The practice offered annual health reviews, longer appointments and home visits as needed for all patients who had poor mental health or dementia. The GPs actively screened patients for dementia and maintained a list of those diagnosed. Both the practice manager and health care assistant had trained to be a Dementia Friend. The practice regularly worked with multidisciplinary teams in the case management of people in this population group. For example, the local mental health team. Information was readily available through the practice advising patients how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.

Updated 9 July 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable. The practice held a register of patients living in vulnerable circumstances including those with a learning disability. It had carried out annual health checks and offered longer appointments for people with a learning disability. The practice maintained a carers’ register and those patients were also offered an annual health check.

Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. They were aware of their responsibilities regarding information sharing, documentation of safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in normal working hours and out of hours. Any patients who were identified as being vulnerable, including looked after children and people who were homeless, were read coded on the practice electronic system. An electronic search was undertaken on a monthly basis to identify whether patients within these cohorts were attending appointments. If found to not be attending their appointment they were subsequently followed up by the practice. The practice had good systems in place to ensure regular and prompt follow up for patients, believed to be in circumstances that made them vulnerable or at risk.