Barwell & Hollycroft Medical Centre

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Barwell & Hollycroft Medical Centre on 30 November 2016. The purpose built premises of the branch practice, Hollycroft Medical Centre were not inspected.

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

• Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns, and to report incidents and near misses. Information about safety was recorded. Significant events were investigated, acted on when necessary and learning shared with staff.

• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed. There were safe systems for prescribing medicines.

• Staffing levels were monitored to ensure they reflected patients’ needs. Effective staff recruitment procedures ensured that only suitable staff were employed.

• The practice worked closely with other health and social care organisations and with the local community in planning how services were provided to ensure that they met patients’ needs. For example, clinical staff had identified patients who were frail and their needs were discussed with other participating health professionals to assess and plan on-going care and treatment.

• Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment and any further training had been identified and planned.

• We observed that patients were treated with compassion, dignity and respect.

• The latest data published showed that patient satisfaction in respect of care and access to the service were rated mostly in line with the local and national averages. An action plan had been developed to address any results that were below average.

• Information about how to make a complaint was readily available and easy to understand. Complaints were dealt with in a timely appropriate way.

• There was a clear leadership structure and staff told us they felt well supported by senior staff. Management sought feedback from patients and staff, which it acted on. The governance system monitored the quality of care and the overall performance across the practice.

We saw an area of outstanding practice:

• The practice had an established Patient Participation Group (PPG) and liaised via email. PPG are a group of patients registered with a practice who work with the practice to improve services and the quality of care. We spoke with one member of the PPG. They told us that their regular meetings were open meetings when between 20 and 25 patients attended. A GP also attended the meetings so that explanations could be given. This had led to changes in the way that the practice worked. For example, the introduction of text telephone reminders regarding booked appointments and investigations around patients who failed to attend for their appointments. The PPG was also involved in other local initiatives such as health promotion events, for example diabetes prevention, and they were developing befriending schemes.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice