North Trafford Group Practice

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

The service had a good learning culture and people could raise concerns. Managers investigated incidents thoroughly. People were protected and kept safe. Staff understood and managed risks. The facilities and equipment met the needs of people, were clean and well-maintained and any risks mitigated. There were enough staff with the right skills, qualifications and experience. Managers made sure staff received training and regular appraisals to maintain high-quality care. Staff managed medicines well and involved people in planning any changes.

This service scored 75 (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 had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. They listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were learnt to continually identify and embed good practice.

People felt supported to raise concerns and felt staff treated them with compassion and understanding. Representatives from the Patient Participation Group (PPG) felt the provider took concerns seriously and proactively made improvements to the service.

Managers encouraged staff to raise concerns when things went wrong. During staff meetings, the whole team discussed and learnt from clinical issues. Minutes from these meetings were shared with staff that were unable to attend the meetings on the day that they were held.

Staff felt there was an open culture, and that safety was a top priority. The provider had processes for staff to report incidents, near misses and safety events.

There was a system to record and investigate complaints, and when things went wrong, staff apologised and gave people support. Learning from incidents and complaints resulted in changes that improved care for others.

The service worked with people and healthcare partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety was managed or monitored. They made sure there was continuity of care, including when people moved between different services.

There were systems in place for processing information relating to new patients. The service worked with other providers to deliver shared care and when patients moved between services. Referrals and test results were managed in a timely way.

The service worked with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and the best way to achieve that. They concentrated on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect. The service shared concerns quickly and appropriately.

Safeguarding policies were in place and known to staff, who were appropriately trained in safeguarding procedures. The practice maintained a list of vulnerable people and acted on concerns working in partnership with other organisations.

The service worked well with people to fully understand and manage risks by thinking holistically. They provided care that fully met people’s needs and was safe, supportive and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them.

Emergency equipment was available and maintained with regular checks being undertaken. Emergency drugs were available; they were stored correctly and regularly checked. Staff could recognise a deteriorating patient and knew of action to take. Patients were advised on risks related to their condition and actions to take if their condition deteriorated.

The service was fully aware of all potential risks in the care environment and controlled them well. They made sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care.

The premises were well maintained and were in good state of repair, there were no issues with the environment of either of the 2 premises.

Appropriate Health and Safety and Building Risk Assessments had been undertaken and any actions identified had been taken. There were fire, electrical wiring and lift risk assessments all in place. Audits had been undertaken and risks identified had been addressed.

Contracts were in place to ensure the premises were maintained. There was a business continuity plan in place which was monitored and reviewed.

The service made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs.

There were a range of clinical and non-clinical roles within the practice. We found training was up to date, learning needs and development of staff was managed appropriately, and staff were working within their agreed areas of competence. Safe recruitment practices were followed. All staff had completed a Disclosure Baring Service (DBS) check that was enhanced where required for individual roles.

The service thoroughly assessed and managed the risk of infection. They always quickly detected and controlled the risk of it spreading and always shared concerns with appropriate agencies promptly.

The practice had a designated infection, prevention and control lead and all staff had completed relevant training. Cleaning schedules were in place and followed.

Hand washing audits were completed on a regular basis. Most recent hand washing audits showed 100% compliance.

Risk assessments were completed when new risks were identified. Any actions that needed to be taken following risk assessments were placed on the risk register and the service ensured that these actions were followed up to mitigate identified risks.

The service ensured that hand wash basins were appropriate for use, and the hand drying towels and soap dispensers were well stocked. Signage on how to correctly wash hands was located near to every sink.

The service made sure that medicines and treatments were safe and met people’s needs, capacities and preferences. They involved people in planning, including when changes happened.

Staff involved people in reviews of their medicines and helped them understand how to manage their medicines safely. People knew what to do and who to contact if their condition did not improve or they experienced any unexpected symptoms.

Staff received regular training, were competency assessed on medicines optimisation, and felt confident managing the storage, administration and recording of medicines.

Staff managed prescription stationery appropriately and securely. Staff followed protocols to ensure they prescribed all medicines safely, and ensured people received all recommended medicines reviews and monitoring. Medicines were stored securely and at appropriate temperatures with regular checks of fridges being completed. Staff regularly checked the stock levels and expiry dates for all medicines, including emergency medicines and vaccines. Staff stored medical gases, such as oxygen, safely and completed required safety risk assessments. The provider had effective systems to manage and respond to safety alerts and medicine recalls.

Staff followed established processes to ensure people, prescribed medicines with specific risks, received recommended monitoring.

Staff took steps to ensure they prescribed medicines appropriately to optimise care outcomes, including antibiotics. Prescribing data reviewed as part of our assessment confirmed this. The number of antimicrobials issued by the provider was lower than local and national averages. There was a programme of regular clinical audits of prescribing that focused on improving care and treatment.