Thorntree 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 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 provider treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Arrangements were in place to promote patients’ privacy, including a private room if a patient did not wish to speak at reception. Where language barriers existed, interpretation services were made available, and longer appointments were offered when needed. Clinicians ensured care and treatment was tailored to personal and cultural preferences.

National GP Patient Survey data reflected people felt listened to and were treated with kindness. Eighty four percent of patients said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at treating them with care and concern during their last general practice appointment, in line with the local average of 88%and the National average of 86%. Seventy-four per centof patients said the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at considering their mental wellbeing during their last general practice appointment, in line with the local average of 77%and the National average of 74%.

Out of 115 family and friends test responses received by the practice in the last three months, 95% were positive, with many patients praising the caring and professional attitude of staff.

Extra information on end of life care and bereavement support was given to families. A condolence letter was sent to bereaved families with GPs making additional support phone calls where necessary.

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.Patient communication needs were met to enable them to be fully involved in their care. Where people required reasonable adjustments, this was flagged on their record and staff showed a high awareness.

The GP Patient Survey showed the number of patients who thought the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at listening to them during their last general practice appointment was 82%, slightly below the local average of 89% and the national average of 87%. Ninety five per cent of patients had confidence and trust in the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to during their last general practice appointment, slightly above the local and national averages of 93%.

Carers were identified and supported. The practice worked proactively to identify carers opportunistically, through new patients registration and through long term conditions reviews. When carers were identified they were supported and offered referrals to the Social Prescribing team, carers networks, and charitable organisations.

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

Staff helped patients and their carers to access advocacy and community-based services.

The provider had processes in place to listen to and understand 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 system 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 able to give examples where they had appropriately triaged and escalated concerns to the on call GP.

In the National GP Patient Survey, 89%of respondentsfelt their needs were met during their last general practice appointment, in line with the local average of 91% and the national average of 90%.

The practice regularly reviewed AE and Urgent Treatment Centre attendances, and 111 calls from patients. The practice population faced very high levels of social deprivation and struggled to engage with care planning. To assist with this the practice offered more on the day appointments and flexibility around medication meaning prescriptions could be issued within a few hours to avoid 111 calls or urgent care attendances.

The provider gave us examples for how they cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care, such as sharing and promoting positive feedback received from patients.

The provider had identified several action plan priorities in response to the 2024 NHS General Practice Staff Survey. These included introducing informal well-being checks, promoting continuous professional development and encouraging skill sharing sessions.

Staff consistently described open door policies of leaders, good communication between teams, and a supportive environment. Staff reported and appreciated high levels of personal and professional support from leaders.