The Care Quality Commission
  • Doctor
  • GP practice

Clerkenwell Medical Practice

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Finsbury Health Centre, 17 Pine Street, London, EC1R 0LP (020) 7833 5906

Provided and run by:
Clerkenwell Medical Practice

All Inspections

6 July 2023

During a monthly review of our data

We carried out a review of the data available to us about Clerkenwell Medical Practice on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.

This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.

If you have concerns about Clerkenwell Medical Practice, you can give feedback on this service.

26 February 2020

During an annual regulatory review

We reviewed the information available to us about Clerkenwell Medical Practice on 26 February 2020. We did not find evidence of significant changes to the quality of service being provided since the last inspection. As a result, we decided not to inspect the surgery at this time. We will continue to monitor this information about this service throughout the year and may inspect the surgery when we see evidence of potential changes.

17 May 2018

During a routine inspection

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previous report rating 05/2016 – 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

This service was previously inspected in December 2015 and given a rating of good for the key questions of safe, effective, caring, and well led care and a rating of outstanding for responsive. The overall rating was good.

We carried out an announced comprehensive re-inspection at Clerkenwell Medical Practice on 17 May 2018, as part of our inspection programme.

At this inspection we found:

  • 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.
  • The service responded to patient needs and specifically tailored and focused the way it provided care according to those needs. 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:

  • Review the systems around the calibration of clinical equipment and the testing of electronic equipment (Portable Appliance Testing) to ensure that equipment is safe to use.
  • The practice should review how information is provided to patients who do not speak English as a first language, for instance, information about chaperoning services and health screening programmes.
  • Continue to review processes in place to further increase the uptake of cervical screening and childhood immunisations.
  • Continue to review high exception reporting with a view to ensuring that it remains appropriate and in line with local and national averages.
  • Review how patients with learning difficulties are supported.
  • Review and improve how patients with caring responsibilities are identified and recorded on the clinical system to ensure that information, advice and support is made available to them.

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.

22 December 2016

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Clerkenwell Medical Practice on 22 December 2015. 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 a named GP and that there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available 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.

We saw some areas of outstanding practice including:

  • The practice had developed an expertise for working with patients living with long term conditions. For example, patients living with HIV and had been recognised as being ‘HIV friendly’. Information about this was displayed on their website, where there is also a link to the Terrence Higgins Trust. They had a lead GP who provided education sessions for other GPs around screening, co-morbidity and safe medicines prescribing. Thus enabling patients in this group to have their health needs met in primary care therefore reducing the impact on secondary care services. Another example was, all new diabetic patients were referred to the local hospital community diabetic service that provided education and empowerment sessions for patients, to help them understand and better manage their disease. The course for newly diagnosed diabetic patients, was a 6 hour course (either one day or 2 half days). We saw that during the last year 20 patients had been referred to the course and 19 had attended.

  • The practice enabled patients to take responsibility for their treatment through the provision of on-line services which included self-referral forms for physiotherapy, podiatry and iCope psychological services.

However, there were also areas of practice where the provider should make improvements.

  • Ensure that all staff receives relevant role specific training on safeguarding adults.

  • Ensure senior staff in the practice receive annual appraisals.

  • Ensure that all staff are up to date with basic life support training.

  • The practice should consider implementing extended hours appointments to enable greater flexibility for working patients to see a GP.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice