Thornton Heath Medical Practice

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

At our last assessment, we rated this key question as Good. At this assessment, the rating remains the same.
We looked for evidence that the service involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff protected their privacy and dignity. They treated them as individuals and supported their preferences. People had choice in their care and treatment. The service supported staff wellbeing.
 

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 service always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.
Arrangements were in place to promote patients’ privacy. The National GP Patient Survey data reflected people felt listened to and were treated with kindness. Staff we spoke with understood Gillick competency and there was a process to ensure young adults had control over their own privacy and the amount of parental involvement in managing their care and support.
The National GP Patient Survey 2025 showed a total of 73% of respondents said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at treating them with care and concern during their last general practice appointment compared to the local 87% and national 86%.
The National GP Patient Survey 2025 showed 79% of respondents said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at listening to them during their last appointment compared to the local 89% and national 87%.
We saw posters in the reception area and clinical rooms advising people about chaperones. All clinical rooms had curtains to maintain privacy when being examined. The practice also had a designated room that patients could use if they needed a private space. During the site visit, we observed staff being helpful and polite to patients.
 

The service treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.
Patients’ personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristics needs were understood and met. Patient communication needs were met to enable them to be fully involved in their care. Alerts were put on the clinical system and reception could book longer appointments for patients that required them. The practice made reasonable adjustments for patients with disabilities and offered interpreting and translation services for those whose first language was not English, including British sign language support.
 

The service promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.
There was a system for appointment triage that ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health crisis teams.
Staff helped patients and their carers to access advocacy and community-based services.
The National GP Patient Survey data showed that 84% of the respondents felt involved as much as they wanted to be in decisions about their care and treatment during their last general practice appointment compared to the local 92% and national of 91%.
 

The service listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.
There was a system for appointment triage that ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health crisis teams.
Staff were trained in basic life support and all staff spoken to knew where to access emergency equipment.
There was also a colour coded traffic light poster in the reception area explaining what staff should do in different scenarios and if a patient’s condition was deteriorating.
 

The service cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.
Staff told us they were valued by leaders. Leaders had taken steps to recognise and meet the wellbeing needs of staff, which included the necessary resources and facilities for safe working, such as regular breaks and rest areas. Staff reported being supported if they were struggling at work. We saw team building days were established within the practice. Staff told us the practice was accommodating to their needs and gave examples of where they had been supported during times when they had caring responsibilities which required them to take time off. At these times leaders checked on their wellbeing and showed empathy. We saw a staff suggestion box in the reception area. Managers told us this was checked weekly, managers also had an open-door policy, and they always encouraged staff to take breaks.