Archived: Kingfisher Family Practice

Updated 16 November 2016

Kingfisher Family Practice is situated in the coastal town of Lancing, West Sussex operates from:

19-21 Culver Road,

Lancing,

West Sussex,

BN15 9AX

The practice provides services for approximately 5,550 patients living within the Lancing area. The practice holds a general medical services (GMS) contract and provides GP services commissioned by NHS England. A GMS contract is one between the practice and NHS England where elements of the contract such as opening times are standard. The practice has larger numbers of patients aged 65 and older compared to the national average. Deprivation amongst children and older people is in line with the average when compared to the population nationally. The practice has more patients with long standing health conditions and health related problems affecting their daily lives than the national average, which could mean an increased demand for GP services.

As well as a team of three GP partners and two salaried GPs (four male and one female), the practice also employs an advanced nurse practitioner and three practice nurses. Two practice managers are employed and there is a team of receptionists and administrative clerks.

The practice is a training practice for GP trainees, foundation level two doctors, medical students and students nurses.

Kingfisher Family Practice is open between 8am and 6.30pm on weekdays and appointments are available from 8.30am to 11.30am and from 3pm to 5.30pm on weekdays. Extended hours appointments are available on Tuesdays from 7am to 8am and on Wednesdays from 7.40am to 8pm. The practice also offers appointments on Saturday mornings from 9am to 10.40am at another local practice. A weekly dermatology clinic is available from the practice on Saturdays from 9am to 1pm. There are phone appointments available with GPs throughout the day according to patient need. Routine appointments are bookable up to six weeks in advance. Patients are able to book appointments by phone, online or in person.

Patients are provided with information on how to access the duty GP or the out of hour’s service by calling the practice or by referring to its website.

The practice is registered to provide the regulated activities of diagnostic and screening procedures; treatment of disease, disorder and injury; maternity and midwifery services; family planning; and surgical procedures.

Updated 16 November 2016

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Kingfisher Family Practice on 23 August 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 been trained to provide them with 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. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and 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.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.
• The practice nurses had recently received an award for an innovation in improving the travel health information provided to patients.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Continue to show improvements in the management of patients with mental health needs.

• Continue to identify patients within the practice who are also carers.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 16 November 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people with long-term conditions.

• Nursing staff had lead roles in chronic disease management and patients at risk of hospital admission were identified as a priority.

• Performance for diabetes related indicators was comparable with the clinical commissioning group (CCG) and national averages. For example, patients with diabetes who had a blood pressure reading in the preceding 12 months of 140/80mmHg or less was 78% compared to the CCG average of 83% and the national average of 78%.

• The local diabetes specialist nurse held monthly clinics for the management of patients with complex health needs.

• Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed.

• All these patients had a named GP and a structured annual review to check their health and medicines needs were being met. For those patients with the most complex needs, the named GP worked with relevant health and care professionals to deliver a multidisciplinary package of care.

Updated 16 November 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of families, children and young people.

• There were systems in place to identify and follow up children living in disadvantaged circumstances and who were at risk, for example, children and young people who had a high number of A&E attendances or who failed to attend for hospital appointments. Immunisation rates were relatively high for all standard childhood immunisations.

• The practice’s uptake for the cervical screening programme was 86%, which was comparable to the clinical commissioning group (CCG) average of 83% and the national average of 82%.

• Patients told us that children and young people were treated in an age-appropriate way and were recognised as individuals, and we saw evidence to confirm this.

• Appointments were available outside of school hours and the premises were suitable for children and babies.

• We saw positive examples of joint working with midwives and health visitors.

• There was a notice board with information for young people.

• The practice was a condom distribution centre for young people and provided a discrete sexual health testing service.

Updated 16 November 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of older people.

• The practice offered proactive, personalised care to meet the needs of the older people in its population.

• The practice was responsive to the needs of older people, and offered home visits and urgent appointments for those with enhanced needs.

• The practice offered six monthly reviews for patients in local care homes and visited newly registered patients living in care homes within ten days of their registration.

Updated 16 November 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of working-age people (including those recently retired and students).

• The needs of the working age population, those recently retired and students had been identified and the practice had adjusted the services it offered to ensure these were accessible, flexible and offered continuity of care.

• The practice was proactive in offering online services as well as a full range of health promotion and screening that reflects the needs for this age group.

• The practice offered a meningitis vaccine to students registered at the practice who had not previously received the vaccine.

Updated 16 November 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia).

• 75% of patients diagnosed with dementia had had their care reviewed in a face to face meeting in the last 12 months, which was lower than the clinical commissioning group (CCG) average of 82% and the national average of 84%. However the practice showed us they had made significant improvements in these results in 2015/2016.

• Performance for indicators related to patients with poor mental health was lower than the local and national averages. For example, 20% of their patients with severe and enduring mental health problems had a comprehensive care plan documented in their records within the last 12 months which was significantly lower than the CCG average of 90% and the national average of 88%. The practice showed us they had made significant improvements in these results in 2015/2016.

• The practice regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of patients experiencing poor mental health, including those with dementia.

• The practice carried out advance care planning for patients with dementia.

• The practice had told patients experiencing poor mental health about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.

• The practice had a system in place to follow up patients who had attended accident and emergency where they may have been experiencing poor mental health.

• Staff had a good understanding of how to support patients with mental health needs and dementia and the majority of staff had undergone dementia training.

Updated 16 November 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable.

• The practice held a register of patients living in vulnerable circumstances including homeless people, travellers and those with a learning disability.

• The practice offered longer appointments for patients with a learning disability.

• The practice regularly worked with other health care professionals in the case management of vulnerable patients.

• The practice informed vulnerable patients about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.

• Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. Staff were aware of their responsibilities regarding information sharing, documentation of safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in normal working hours and out of hours.