Sacriston Medical Centre

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

We looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture.

At our last assessment, we rated this key question as Good. At this assessment, the rating remains the same.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

All staff had contributed to the development of the practice vision and strategy, which was kept under review. Comments from staff referred to a ‘reflective’ culture with a strong ethos of ‘teamwork’. It was clear from these comments that staff were ‘proud to work at Sacriston’.

The provider had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

Staff told us leaders in the practice was approachable. Staff also told us leaders modelled the values of the practice. We saw the leadership team worked with other practices in the primary care network and were engaged in the development of primary care services within the local area.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

The practice had established Freedom to Speak up arrangements with other practices in the primary care network. Staff were aware of how to raise concerns.

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They work towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who work for them.

Policies and procedures to promote diversity and equality were in place. We saw senior leaders had addressed concerns related to discrimination for administrative and clinical staff.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

Leaders and managers supported staff, and all the staff we spoke with were clear on their individual roles and responsibilities. Managers met with staff regularly to complete appraisals and performance reviews. The provider had established governance processes that were appropriate for their service. Staff could access all required policies and procedures either online or physical copy. Managers held regular practice meetings with staff, during which they discussed clinical concerns and emerging risks. Managers clearly recorded any actions arising from these meetings and ensured they shared these with the appropriate staff. Staff took patient confidentiality and information security seriously.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services work seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

The provider worked with other practices within their primary care network to offer extended access, and flu and covid vaccination programmes. Staff had made adjustments to improve the coordination of their service with community healthcare services, including through established meetings or visits centred on the care of those with learning disabilities and autism.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research. In relation to care provided to those with learning disabilities the practice had strong established procedures and dedicated staff. Other areas that showed clinicians at the practice providing services that were innovative included a specialist menopause service that had 2 clinicians certified by the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health (FRSH). They worked with colleagues at the practice and in the PCN to identify and promote best practice for women and girls. The practice also had a minor surgery directly enhanced service that primarily offered the removal of things like lesions, lipoma’s, ingrown toenails and giving steroid injections. This service was very efficient, detailed and run by dedicated, experienced clinicians. We saw evidence of strong auditing processes of the surgery and positive feedback from patients. We saw evidence of between 2 and 16 patients a month going through surgical procedures at the practice, with reviews in place to ensure safe capacity for staff and resources

The practice had a business plan in place to help drive improvements and set down long term planning/horizon scanning. The practice also had a comprehensive risk register.

Clinicians at the practice instituted microteaching sessions amongst themselves in recognition of the need to continuously improve and the increasing time constraints. We saw evidence of innovative techniques used to look at topics including; new asthma guidance, palpitations, HRT and the use of oral progestogen when taking mounjaro.

The practice was a teaching practice that took medical students, foundation doctors and registrars. Leaders took pride in the scope of learning opportunities they offered but continued to keep under review any excess demands placed on GPs to prevent burnout. We saw evidence of strongly positive feedback from students who recognised clinical professionalism and approachability.