The Colliery Practice

Updated 20 June 2016

The Colliery Medical Practice is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as a GP partnership provider in Cannock. The practice holds a Personal Medical Services (PMS) contract with NHS England. A PMS contract is a locally agreed contract between NHS England and the general practice and offers variation in the range of service which may be provided by the practice. At the time of our inspection the practice had 13,696 patients.

The main site is The Colliery Practice, with branch site in Huntington. The sites are as follows:

• The Colliery Practice, 60 Hednesford Street, Cannock, WS11 1DJ
• Huntington Branch, Colliers Way, Huntington, Cannock, WS12 4UD

We only visited The Colliery Practice as part of this inspection. The Huntington Branch is approximately ten minutes away by car.

The practice staffing comprises of:

• Five GP partners (four male and one female) and two female salaried GPs.
• Three female nurse practitioners, three female practice nurses, one female health care assistant and two female phlebotomists.
• A practice manager.
• An assistant practice manager.
• One secretary, four administrators, a senior receptionist, assistant senior receptionist and 10 receptionists.

The main practice is open between 8am and 6.30pm Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 7.30am until 6.30pm on Tuesdays and Thursday. The branch practice at Huntington is currently open between 9am and 6pm Monday to Friday and 9am until 12 noon on a Saturday. Extended consultation hours are offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 7.30am and 8am at the main practice in Cannock and on Saturdays between 9am and 12 noon at the Huntington branch, and are by appointment only. The practice has opted out of providing cover to patients in the out-of-hours period. During this time services are provided by Staffordshire Doctors Urgent Care Ltd.

Updated 20 June 2016

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Colliery Medical Practice on 17 May 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 told us on the day of the inspection that they were able to get ‘on the day’ appointments when they needed them. They told us they could usually get a routine appointment within a week but it may take longer for an appointment with their GP of choice.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• One of the GPs with a special interest in neurology ran a headache clinic, which was also open to patients registered at other local practices.
• 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.

There were areas of practice where the provider should make improvements.

The provider should:

• Ask applicants about any physical or mental health conditions they may have as part of the recruitment process.
• Improve the effectiveness in the use of the practice’s long term condition templates and ensure staff are suitably trained in their use.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 20 June 2016

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

• The nurse practitioners had lead roles in chronic disease management and patients at risk of hospital admission were identified as a priority.
• The practice maintained registers of patients with long term conditions. Patients were offered a structured annual review to check their health and medicines needs were being met.
• Performance in the five diabetes related indicators were comparable to or better than the national average. For example: The percentage of patients with diabetes, on the register, in whom a specific blood test was recorded was 83% compared with the national average of 77%.
• Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed.
• 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 20 June 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 who were at risk, for example families with children in need or on children protection plans.
• The practice proactively identified any children who may be at risk. When potential safeguarding concerns were identified an alert was placed on the electronic record. If three or more alerts were added, a full review of the notes was undertaken, and if any potential concerns, identified, the child was discussed at the practice multidisciplinary meeting and further actions agreed.
• The practice provided an in-house counselling service for patients aged 13 years and above.
• Appointments were available outside of school hours and the premises were suitable for children and babies. Same day emergency appointments were available for children.
• There were screening and vaccination programmes in place and the practice’s immunisation rates
• Data from the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for 2014/2015 showed that 81% of women aged 25-64 had received a cervical screening test in the preceding five years. This was comparable to the national average of 82%.
• The practice offered family planning and routine contraception services.
• We saw positive examples of joint working with midwives and health visitors. Midwife led clinics were held at the practice. Practice staff regularly liaised with the health visitors, who were based in the same building.

Updated 20 June 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 proactively invited older patients for an annual review if they had not been seen during the previous 12 months.

Updated 20 June 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 offered on the day and pre-bookable appointments, as well as triage and telephone consultations. The practice also offered extended hours two mornings a week and on Saturdays.
• 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.

Updated 20 June 2016

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

• Ninety-four percent of patients diagnosed with dementia had had their care reviewed in a face to face meeting in the last 12 months, which was above the national average of 84%.
• Performance for the mental health related indicators was comparable to the CCG and national average.
• The practice had told patients experiencing poor mental health about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.
• Counselling services were available at the practice as well as through the community based emotional wellbeing service.

Updated 20 June 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 those with a learning disability or identified as vulnerable.
• The practice offered longer appointments for patients with a learning disability.
• The practice engaged with a number of families from the travelling community who were based locally and registered at the practice.
• The staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. The 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.