The Penrhyn Surgery

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We looked for evidence that the service involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect. At our last assessment, we rated this key question as Good. At this assessment, the rating remains the same.

This service scored 80 (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 treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. National GP Patient Survey data reflected people felt listened to and were treated with kindness. The GP patient survey 2025 showed 79% of respondents said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at listening to them during their last appointment, which was below the local average of 82% and the national average of 87%.Data for the national GP survey 2025 showed a total of 76% of respondents said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at treating them with care and concern during their last general practice appointment which was below the local average of 81% and the national average of 86%. These results were higher than the 2024 results and demonstrated some improvement in patient experience.

We were provided with patient feedback from local Healthwatch which they had gathered in June 2025. Healthwatch staff interviewed patients in person at the service and completed a questionnaire. There were 15 patients who took part in surveys and interviews. 100% of respondents felt safe, respected, and treated with dignity. Five patients who shared their experiences of the service directly with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) gave positive feedback about the staff. Comments included praises such as caring, professional and friendly.

In response to patient feedback regarding privacy and dignity, the practice created an additional room during the surgery refurbishment to house the blood pressure and weight machine. In addition, the surgery expansion had made it possible to provide safe, confidential rooms for other purposes including for breast feeding mothers or for autistic people who required a quiet area.

Reception staff were observed to respect patients' privacy and dignity at all times. Staff across the service demonstrated understanding and a non-judgmental attitude, providing patients with timely, clear information about their care, treatment, or condition. Where language barriers existed, interpretation services were available, and longer appointments were offered when needed. There were arrangements to maintain confidentiality in the reception area for example, distressed patients or those requesting privacy were offered a separate space to speak confidentially with staff.

Staff we spoke with understood Gillick competency and there was a process to ensure young adults had control over their own privacy and the amount of parental involvement in managing their care and support.

The service treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met their needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Patients’ personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristics needs were understood and met. Staff used different communication aids and interpreters to enable patients to engage in their care, treatment and support to improve their experience and outcomes.

Appropriate adjustments were made to the service based on patients with protected characteristics. For example, patients with learning disabilities were invited for an annual review and asked to complete a questionnaire to ensure that the service were continually meeting their needs. We saw that staff had received training on how to support autistic people and people with a learning disability. Patient communication needs were also met by staff using google translate and language line if they needed to communicate with staff face to face. Staff informed us patients would be offered a chaperone, and we saw notices displayed in waiting and clinical areas to support this. If patients struggled with hearing a hear loop could be provided.

The service promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

Staff and leaders told us that people were supported to have choice and control over their own care and to make decisions about their care, treatment and well-being. The service supported people to understand their rights by using different ways to communicate. There were policies and procedures to ensure peoples records were kept up to date with information that supported them to maintain relationships, as well as networks that were important to them. Staff helped patients and their carers to access advocacy and community-based services. The service social prescriber worked closely with patients in this area.

The service listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

There was a protocol for appointment triage that ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health crisis teams.

Staff were alert to people’s needs and took time to observe, communicate and engage people in discussions about their immediate needs. The national GP patient survey carried out from January to March 2025 had 94 responses. This found 65% of patients knew what the next step would be after contacting the service and 94% knew what the next step would be within two days of contacting the service. In addition, 81% stated to some extent or definitely their needs were met during their last GP appointment.

Staff training ensured they were able to quickly recognise when people needed urgent help or support and staff used appropriate tools and technology to assist. Same day appointments were available for patients who required immediate care. The length of call waiting time and response was monitored to ensure patients’ needs were promptly responded to. If patients came into the service to ask for an appointment, staff told us they would support the patient with their request.

The service cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff told us they were valued by leaders. Leaders had taken steps to recognise and meet the wellbeing needs of staff, which included the necessary resources and facilities for safe working, such as regular breaks, rest areas, and flexible working. They had regular meetings where staff could raise concerns.

There were high levels of satisfaction across all staff. Staff told us they had regular opportunities to provide feedback, raise concerns and suggest ways to improve the service. This was done through staff surveys, team meetings and one to ones. Staff reported being supported if they were struggling at work. We saw team building days were established within the service. We saw evidence during the last 12 months where leaders had provided weekly 15-minute huddle sessions and informal team building breaks where staff could connect and feel supported. Leaders also provided weekly light exercise activity sessions open to all staff. Staff reported that leaders provided a working environment where they felt comfortable and empowered to provide a high-quality service to the community.