Albrighton 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

We looked for evidence that 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 80 (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 was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff always treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect National GP Patient Survey data reflected people felt listened to and were treated with kindness. The latest survey showed 95% of people said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at listening to them during their last general practice appointment. This was above the national (87%) and local (88%) averages.

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.

People using the service felt cared for and confident that the staff showed respect and had their well-being at the heart of the care provided. Examples of the service going above and beyond were recognised, for example, check in visits outside of their working hours for end of life patients and their families. Examples of exemplary compassion were seen demonstrating staff members going above and beyond their job role to ensure service users felt valued, cared for and treated with kindness, including outside of their working day, showing a real community compassionate culture. -

Feedback from other services who worked in partnership with the service also described a kind, compassionate and caring environment. Albrighton Surgery were the first GP service in the county to achieve “you’re welcome” standards aimed to make health services accessible for young people.

A local community group who supported refugees recognised the challenge that the service and staff had balancing and adapting the service for the people they support, they fed back that the service had been incredibly understanding and kind, attending coffee mornings, giving up time to understand cultural differences and personal stories. All staff at Albrighton Medical Practice had shown compassion and allowed additional time and care for people, of whom many had been affected by traumatic events.

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 with the use of interpreters and translation apps suggested by support workers.

Staff demonstrated a clear understanding of the needs of the service population and provided examples of how they supported patients. For instance, individuals with complex needs were assigned a dedicated clinician to oversee and coordinate their care, ensuring their needs were effectively met.

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 advocacy and community-based services. Data from the National GP Patient Survey showed that 59% of patients were offered a choice of time or day when they last tried to make a general practice appointment. This was above the national (54%) and local (50%) averages.

The demographic was understood and the service adapted to allow service users choice and understanding of their health. The services attended many community settings, for example there was a young persons notice board with relevant information and the service had attended a local school to provide information relating to women’s health.

Service users in care homes were given time for review and additional support, as well as their families and the staff within the care home settings. Feedback showed those service users within care settings were listened to, decisions respected and the service understood their preferences.

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 structured system in place for triage that ensured people with immediate needs had timely access to services. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health crisis teams.

Feedback from care homes regarding care for residential patients was consistently positive. The service responded in a timely and compassionate manner, ensuring patients received care that upheld their comfort, dignity, and respect. Care homes reported a good working relationship with Albrighton Surgery, describing staff as professional, responsive, helpful, and respectful.

Patient feedback described many occasions where the service had ensured their welfare and care was effective and prompt, there was a good culture and system in place to provide treatment to those in most need with knowledgeable staff who could identify a service user whose symptoms required urgent review.

End of life patients and families were supported, with information provided. Other services, such as out-of-hours, care homes and the local hospice, were provided with relevant details, we saw evidence of extra support with additional home visits and check ins outside of normal working hours to support end of life patients and their families.

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, with the work environment feeling like a family. This was evident with the many long standing members of staff, who shared experiences of support and development during their period of employment. There were social activities organised and supportive communications, staff enjoyed the baking from one member of staff routinely and donations to charities were welcome as a result, impacting on the community around them.