4 February 2016
During a routine inspection
Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Richard Guilding’s Surgery on 4 February 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.
Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:
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The practice had a clear vision which had quality, safety and high-quality person-centred care as its top priority. High standards were promoted and owned by all practice staff with evidence of team working across all roles.
- There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
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The practice had an effective governance system in place, was well organised and actively sought to learn from performance data, incidents and feedback.
- Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and that there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day.
- Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
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Feedback from patients about their care was consistent and highly positive.
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The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
We saw outstanding practice including:
- The latest GP National patient survey completed in 2015 and published in January 2016 showed the proportion of patients who would recommend this practice was 90%, which far exceeded the local Clinical Commissioning Group and national average. All of the 45 patient Care Quality Commission comment cards we received and the six patients we spoke with on the day were highly positive about the service experienced. Patients recalled episodes of high levels of care and compassion to overcome obstacles including a nurse attending patients home addresses to dress ulcers in her lunchtime if the community nurses cannot attend, rather than let an ulcer deteriorate. This was further backed up in performance data for the care of long-term conditions, patient testimonials presented by the practice, views from three local care homes we spoke with, reviews on NHS Choices and the Friends and Family Test survey.
However, there was an area of practice where the provider needs to make improvements. Importantly the provider should:
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Formalise the appraisal process for administration and reception staff.
Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice