Archived: Crosby Village Surgery

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Crosby Village Surgery on 12 August 2015. Overall the practice is rated as Requires Improvement.

Specifically, we found the practice to be requires improvement for safety and well led and for the population groups it serves. They were rated as good for providing effective, caring and responsive services.

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

• Systems were not in place to ensure incidents and significant events were identified, investigated and reported for all cases that had occurred.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered in line with best practice guidance. Staff had received training appropriate for their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned.
• Patients spoke highly about the practice and its staff. They said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment. Patients also reported their concerns for the high use of locum and agency GPs.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. However, the new role of clinical lead GP was not supported with a written job description which includes the practice priorities.

There were areas of practice where the provider needs to make improvements.

Importantly, the provider must:

• Ensure that serious and adverse patient incidents are reported, investigated and appropriate actions taken. They should be monitored to ensure that action is taken swiftly to ensure improvements are made as a result of a serious event analysis process. All relevant staff should be notified of the incidents that occur to promote learning and to reduce further harm to patients.

In addition the provider should:

• Ensure that the role of clinical lead GP is supported with a written job description which includes the practice prioritises.
• Improve the systems in place for monitoring medicines, including their storage and expiry dates.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice