The Care Quality Commission
  • Doctor
  • GP practice

Heathfielde Medical Centre

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

8 Lyttelton Road, Hampstead, London, N2 0EQ (020) 8458 9262

Provided and run by:
Heathfielde Medical Centre

All Inspections

During an assessment under our new approach

Date of Assessment: 9,10 16 July 2025. Heathfielde Medical Centre is a GP practice and delivers service to approximately 6400 patients (at the time of this assessment) under a contract held with NHS England. Information published by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities shows that deprivation within the service population group is in the 10th decile (10 of 10). The lower the decile, the more deprived the service population is relative to others. This focused assessment was undertaken following concerns raised to the Commission relating to the provision of service at this location. This assessment looked at 9 quality statements across the key questions of Effective and Well-Led.

EFFECTIVE: People were involved in assessments of their needs. Staff reviewed assessments taking account of people’s communication, personal and health needs. Care was based on latest evidence and good practice. Staff worked with all agencies involved in people’s care for the good outcomes and smooth transitions when moving services. Staff made sure people understood their care and treatment to enable them to give informed consent. Staff involved people took decisions in other people’s best interests where they did not have capacity.

WELL-LED: Leaders and staff did not have a shared vision and culture based on listening, learning and trust. Whilst some leaders were visible, the assessment team were told that not all GP partners were always on site regularly. Not all staff found all GP partners supportive in their day-to-day roles. Staff told us they did not feel confident in giving feedback or felt free from negativity from some GP partners. Staff understood their roles and responsibilities. There was evidence of a culture of improvement.

We found a breach of regulation in relation to Regulation 17 (Good Governance) of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.

11/12/2018

During a routine inspection

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous rating February 2016 – Good).

The key questions at this inspection are rated as:

Are services safe? – Good

Are services effective? – Good

Are services caring? – Good

Are services responsive? – Good

Are services well-led? - Good

We carried out an announced comprehensive at Heathfielde Medical Centre as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

That the provider had effective governance processes in place, risk was well managed and there was evidence of improvements to patient care.

  • The practice had clear systems to manage risk so that safety incidents were less likely to happen. When incidents did happen, the practice learned from them and improved their processes.
  • The practice routinely reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was delivered according to evidence- based guidelines.
  • Staff involved and treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
  • Patients found the appointment system easy to use and reported that they were able to access care when they needed it.
  • There was a strong focus on continuous learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

  • Improve the audit system in relation to the monitoring of prescription pads in accordance with national NHS guidelines.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice

Please refer to the detailed report and the evidence tables for further information.

9 February 2016

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Heathfielde Medical Centre on 9 February 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

  • There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
  • Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
  • Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
  • Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
  • Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand.
  • Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with urgent appointments available on the same day.
  • The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
  • There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
  • The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

  • To reflect on, and seek to improve, performance relating to patient satisfaction, as identified in the practices’ results from the GP patient survey, and to undertake quality improvement activities.

  • To add emergency contact numbers for staff to the business continuity plan so that staff can be contacted in an emergency.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP

Chief Inspector of General Practice