The Care Quality Commission
  • Doctor
  • GP practice

Beaumont Park Surgery

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

The Surgery, Hepscott Drive, Beaumont Park, Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear, NE25 9XJ (0191) 251 4548

Provided and run by:
Beaumont Park Surgery

All Inspections

04 May 2023

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We carried out a short-notice, focused inspection at Beaumont Park Surgery on 4th May 2023. The practice remains rated good overall.

We previously inspected the practice on 8 December 2016. At that time, the practice was rated good overall and for each of the five key questions.

This inspection included an on-site inspection and looked at the key question is the service safe. We have rated the practice as requires improvement for safe. This was in line with our published methodology to limit ratings at the key question level where we have identified a breach of regulations. Overall, the practice remains rated good.

Safe - requires Improvement.
Effective - not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection.
Caring - not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection.
Responsive - not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection.
Well-led -- not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection.

The full reports for previous inspections can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Beaumont Park Surgery on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

Why we carried out this inspection

This was an urgent focused inspection. We have carried out this inspection because we received information of concern relating to infection control issues at the practice.

How we carried out the inspection

This inspection was carried out by 2 CQC inspectors who visited the practice after a short-notice announcement.

This included:

  • Observing the practice.
  • Reviewing evidence of policies and documents in line with the ‘Safe’ domain.

Our findings

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 found that:

  • At this inspection we found that the practice did not have an infection prevention and control lead in place.
  • We found that there was a lack of infection control audit activity being carried out.
  • There was limited information surrounding staff vaccinations; both pre-employment and once employment had commenced. For example, Covid-19 and Flu vaccinations.
  • There was evidence that cleaning logs had recently been put in place and were now being used.
  • Not all staff had received appropriate safeguarding training at the time of the inspection. Staff were also unsure who the safeguarding lead at the practice was.
  • The emergency equipment was located in various places around the practice. Whilst a member of staff was checking the equipment was working, no system was in place for it to be checked in their absence. Other members of staff were unaware a system for administration staff to carry out checks on the defibrillator had been introduced.
  • The waiting room and public spaces were clean and free from clutter.
  • Staff who hadn’t been subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check had not been risk assessed to support this.

We found 1 breach of regulation. The provider must:

  • Ensure care and treatment is provided in a safe way to patients.

In addition, the provider should:

  • Review and improve processes and awareness around significant event reporting and the sharing of lessons learned as a result.
  • Review and improve processes for the checking of emergency medicines and equipment, including formalising arrangements for this to carry on in the absence of designated people.
  • Complete a risk assessment to support the decision not to carry out a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check for any member of staff.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Dr Sean O’Kelly BSc MB ChB MSc DCH FRCA

Chief Inspector of Health Care

18 August 2016

During an inspection looking at part of the service

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out a previous announced comprehensive inspection of this practice on 8 December 2016. Overall, we rated the practice as good. However, there was a breach of legal requirement. In particular, we found:

  • A continuing breach of a legal requirement regarding the lack of appropriate authorisation being place for healthcare staff to administer vaccines. Also, the arrangements for ensuring the security of prescriptions was not sufficiently rigorous.

After the comprehensive inspection the practice told us about what they would do to address the identified breach. We undertook this announced focussed inspection, on 18 August 2016, to check that the practice had followed their plan and to confirm that they now met the legal requirement. You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Beaumont Park Surgery on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Our key findings were as follows:

The provider had complied with the requirement notice we set following our last inspection visit. In particular, we found:

  • The correct authorisation had been put in place to enable health care staff to administer vaccines.

  • Prescription pads and blank prescriptions were securely stored.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

08 December 2015

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Beaumont Park Surgery on 8 December 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

  • Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns, and report incidents and near misses.

  • Feedback from patients was positive about the way staff treated them. Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect.

  • Results from the NHS GP Patient Survey of the practice, published in January 2016, showed that patient satisfaction levels were very good, and the practice had consistently performed above the majority of local CCG and the national averages.The results also demonstrated staff’s commitment to providing their patients with good continuity of care.

  • All staff

  • Risks to patients and staff had been assessed and steps were being taken to minimise these. Whilst most medicines management systems and processes were safe, we identified that influenza vaccines were being administered without the correct authorisation being in place. Also, the arrangements for ensuring prescription security were not fully effective.

  • Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance.

  • Overall, the practice had satisfactory facilities and was well equipped to treat patients. Plans were in place to improve the patient waiting area which was beginning to show signs of wear and tear.

  • Staff were consistent and proactive in supporting patients to live healthier lives, through a targeted approach to health promotion.

  • The practice had performed very well with regards to protecting their older patients against seasonal influenza. They were the ‘top practice’ in North Tyneside for vaccinating patients aged 65 year and over, and had vaccinated over 80% of this group of patients.

  • There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by the management team. Overall, good governance arrangements were in place.

  • Staff had a clear vision for the development of the practice and were committed to providing their patients with good quality care.

The area where the provider must make improvement is:

  • Review the arrangements for non-qualified staff administering influenza vaccines to ensure national guidance is followed, and ensure prescriptions are handled in line with national guidance issued by NHS Protect.

We also identified other areas where the provider needs to make improvements. Importantly, the provider should:

  • Prepare a GP locum induction pack.

  • Carry out regular checks to make sure that clinicians continue to be registered with their professional body.

  • Provide the member of staff designated as the practice’s infection control lead with advanced infection control training.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice