We carried out an announced inspection at Modality Partnership Hull on 1-4 March 2022. Overall, the practice is rated as good.
The ratings for each key question are:
Safe - Good
Effective - Good
Caring - Good
Responsive – Good
Well-led - Good
The full reports for previous inspections can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Modality Partnership Hull on our website at www.cqc.org.uk. However, this was a first inspection.
Why we carried out this inspection
This inspection was a comprehensive inspection due to the provider merging the service with four other locations. They had not been inspected previously.
How we carried out the inspection
Throughout the pandemic CQC has continued to regulate and respond to risk. However, taking into account the circumstances arising as a result of the pandemic, and in order to reduce risk, we have conducted our inspections differently.
This inspection was carried out in a way which enabled us to spend a minimum amount of time on site. This was with consent from the provider and in line with all data protection and information governance requirements.
This included:
- Conducting staff interviews using video conferencing
- Completing clinical searches on the practice’s patient records system and discussing findings with the provider
- Reviewing patient records to identify issues and clarify actions taken by the provider
- Requesting evidence from the provider
- A short site visit
Our findings
We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:
- what we found when we inspected.
- information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
- information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.
We have rated this practice as Good overall.
We found that:
- The practice provided care in a way that kept patients safe and protected them from avoidable harm.
- Patients received effective care and treatment that met their needs.
- Staff dealt with patients with kindness and respect and involved them in decisions about their care.
- The practice adjusted how it delivered services to meet the needs of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The way the practice was led and managed promoted the delivery of high-quality, person-centre care.
Whilst we found no breaches of regulations, the provider should:
- Continue to monitor and take action to improve patient access systems.
We saw several areas of outstanding practice including:
- The provider employed a clinical lead pharmacist who was responsible for continuous monitoring of medicines and prescribing. During the inspection we saw that an electronic prescribing monitoring dashboard was in place to inform the senior leadership team across the organisation. We saw that low-level incidents were monitored to ensure that they were reduced into less risk status. We also saw that monitoring of repeat prescribing had identified 1139 patients that had not requested a repeat prescription in the last six months. The provider told us that all these patients had been contacted regarding their medicine. For example, a patient had stopped taking their medication due a service being stopped. However, the pharmacy team had identified a high blood sugar level for the patient and it assisted them in controlling this to a more manageable level.
- The practice assessed and monitored the physical health of people with mental illness, severe mental illness, and personality disorder. A review of the practice protocols including an outbound telephone call with an invitation to the patient was provided and the options to discuss the review with a member of the social prescribing team in advance of the appointment. This ensured that patients felt safe and supported. For example, patients were offered extended appointments and sessions that were split into manageable sections to allow them time to build trust within the practice rather than not attending their appointment.
- The practice could demonstrate how they identified patients with commonly undiagnosed conditions, for example diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), atrial fibrillation and hypertension. For example, the practice had invested in electronic medical devices i.e. handheld devices to check abnormal heart rhythms. Patients were able to monitor their own heart rhythm with the support of clinicians. This had led to a reduction in the use of some medicines, we found an example of one patient who no longer needed heart medicine at all.
Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.
Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP
Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care