The Care Quality Commission
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Archived: Rickleton Medical Centre

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Office Row, Rickleton, Washington, Tyne and Wear, NE38 9EH (0191) 415 0576

Provided and run by:
Rickleton Medical Centre

Important: The provider of this service changed. See new profile

All Inspections

17 May 2016

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Rickleton Medical Centre on 17 May 2016. Overall, the practice is rated as good.

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

  • There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
  • Most risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
  • Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
  • There was a programme of clinical audit, but it was not clear how the practice used this to demonstrate quality improvement.
  • Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
  • The practice encouraged patient feedback, including complaints. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
  • Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day.
  • The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
  • There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The practice sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
  • The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

We saw one area of outstanding practice:

  • The practice led on a locality initiative to improve the information available to parents to help them access the right support for their ill child. This won the national General Practice Award for clinical team of the year for paediatrics in 2015. The initiative included holding a fun day, educational sessions for parents and producing a children’s leaflet. Analysis of parental knowledge about what conditions could be treated at home, prior to and following education sessions, demonstrated a 29% increase in understanding (from 67% to 96%).

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

  • Consider how they review incidents and significant events over a period of time to increase learning related to any trends and themes.
  • Improve the approach to audit to ensure standards are clearly defined, and there is a clear link between audits and improvement in the quality of the service.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

01 September 2014

During a routine inspection

The practice is based in the Rickleton area of Washington. It is a small practice with 2046 patients. The practice had not previously been inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the provider declared full compliance when it was registered in April 2013. The practice does not have any branch surgeries.

Before the inspection we looked at a wide range of information we held about the practice, as well as information the practice sent to us. We asked other organisations, such as the Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and the local Healthwatch organisation, to share with us what they knew about the practice. We held a listening event where members of the public could tell us about their experiences of GP services within Sunderland. Prior to our visit we also asked patients to complete CQC comment cards telling us about their experiences of the service they had received.

We carried out an announced inspection on 01 September 2014. We also had telephone contact with the practice on 02 September 2014. During the inspection we spoke with patients and staff. We also received 45 CQC comment cards completed by patients. Feedback from patients was very positive. They told us they were satisfied with the care and treatment they received. Patients also reported they felt involved in all decisions concerning their care or treatment, and felt safe using the practice. Patients told us they were treated with respect and dignity at all times. Throughout the inspection we observed patients being treated with compassion and care.

The practice had planned its services to meet the needs of the different types of patients it served. Care and treatment was provided in line with current published guidelines and best practice. The practice had a good leadership team who supported staff to engage positively with patients, learn lessons following significant events and near misses, and undertake learning to develop their professional skills and competences. Medicines were handled safely. Systems were in place to protect and safeguard patients against the risk of harm or abuse. The practice was clean and hygienic throughout.

Please note that when referring to information throughout this report, for example, with regards to Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) data, this relates to the most recent information available to the CQC at that time.