Ombersley Medical Centre

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

We looked for evidence the service involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment, we rated this key question as outstanding. At this assessment, the rating has changed to good.

This service scored 85 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Staff were exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff showed genuine empathy when talking about the people they supported. They spoke about people by name and talked in detail about their circumstances and the impact this had on people’s health and wellbeing.

We observed reception staff treated people with dignity and respect both by telephone and face to face. Staff provided private spaces for people to speak with reception staff and quiet spaces for people to wait if they needed it. Following a sensory audit, reception staff developed a sensory box which patients could use if they need to self soothe. This was particularly useful for autistic people and those with a learning disability.

Staff gave examples of seeing people in their cars where they felt to overwhelmed to come into the practice initially and a GP who walked with a patient to a local coffee shop for an informal conversation so the patient could feel relaxed and build trust with the GP.

More than 300 patients who shared their experiences of the service directly with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) gave exceptionally positive feedback about the staff. Comments included phrases such as efficient, friendly, kind, extremely inclusive, and helpful, evidencing the compassionate culture at the heart of the service. People gave examples of support with significant weight loss which helped reverse a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes, GP’s chasing up treatment plans from hospital appointments and additional support and contact following diagnosis of cancer and support with treatment.

Arrangements were in place to promote patients’ privacy. National GP Patient Survey data reflected people felt listened to and were treated with kindness. For example, in the survey for 2024, 92%of the people who responded said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at treating them with care and concern during their last appointment. 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.

Staff 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. People’s personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristics needs were understood and met. Staff recorded people’s communication needs so they could be fully involved in planning their care and treatment.

The service promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. Staff helped patients and their carers to access other services such as social prescribers and the work well advisor which was funded by the primary care network to support patients to address social issues such as housing which in turn helped to improve their mental wellbeing. The patient participation group and practice staff arranged for other organisations to attend the practice to give advice to carers. For example, information on dementia. They also supported community events such as providing community training in Basic Life Support (BLS) including first aid for adults and children, anaphylaxis (acute allergic reaction) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

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 which ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health services.

The practice had achieved Veteran Friendly Practice accreditation though the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP). This is a program designed to support practices in providing the best possible care for people with a military background and their families. The practice ensured veterans knew about the additional support they could receive when they registered and had a member of the team who as a veteran could relate to the specific needs of this group of patients and offer additional support. All members of the practice team received specific training in supporting veterans so they had a good understanding of the services available and support they could offer.

Leaders and staff had built strong relationships with the Traveller community, who had previously found it difficult to engage with NHS services. They provided continued support even when people had moved out of the area for significant periods of time to ensure treatment plans were followed and additional support and monitoring was still available. This gave continuity of care to this group of patients who often found it difficult to access good levels of healthcare and treatment.

Leaders and staff provided many examples of how they go above what was expected of them to support people. This included GPs making phone calls to people to follow up blood tests and hospital appointments even when the results were normal. Staff made out of hours and weekend visits to patients with complex needs and visited patients admitted to the local hospice.

The service always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and was exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff told us leaders valued them, and they loved their jobs. 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.

Leaders had established support networks for staff to use if they were struggling so support was immediately available and the impact on care to people remained positive. Staff reported being supported if they were having difficulties either personally or professionally which might impact their work. We saw evidence team building, and social events were established within the practice this included access to alternative therapies such as Indian head massage.

Leaders gave examples of supporting staff with initiatives and improvements such as the sensory box in reception and disposable crayons for children to use while waiting and staff confirmed they felt listened to and valued by leaders. Staff feedback spoke of leaders who were caring and inclusive and where staff were encouraged to develop in their roles. Staff had joined the practice after being on placements from university and said it was a pleasure to work in such a supportive environment.