The Care Quality Commission
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Archived: Willow Bank Partnership Community Interest Company Also known as Willow Bank Health Centre

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Willow Bank Health Centre, Trentham Road, Longton, Stoke On Trent, Staffordshire, ST3 4SJ 0300 123 1467

Provided and run by:
Willow Bank Partnership Community Interest Company

All Inspections

21 June 2017

During an inspection looking at part of the service

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We previously carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Willow Bank Partnership Community Interest Company (also known as Willow Bank Health Centre) on 4 August 2016. The overall rating for the practice was Good with requires improvement in providing safe services. The full comprehensive report from the 4 August 2016 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Willow Bank Partnerships Interest Company (Willow Bank Health Centre) on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

This inspection was an announced focused inspection carried out on 21 June 2017 to confirm that the practice had carried out their plan to meet the legal requirements in relation to the breach in regulation that we identified in our previous inspection on 4 August 2016. This report covers our findings in relation to those requirements and also additional improvements made since our last inspection.

Overall the practice is rated as Good.

Our key findings were as follows:

  • The provider had enhanced their systems to receive and act on alerts about medicines that may affect patients’ safety.

  • A written policy had been introduced for the identification and process of handling significant events.

  • A process had been introduced for regularly reviewing Patient Group Directions (PGDs) to ensure that they met legislative requirements.

  • The provider had not improved the monitoring of practice infection control compliance in-between audit cycles.

We also saw the following best practice recommendations we previously made in relation to providing effective, caring and responsive services had been actioned:

  • The provider had prioritised a plan and was working towards improving the uptake of annual health assessments for patients with a learning disability. Sixty percent of assessments had been completed since the last inspection and the remainder were scheduled to take place.

  • The provider had carried out a detailed audit to investigate the reasons for the higher than average attendance at A&E by registered patients and was following up frequent attenders, reviewing and discussing ways that they can be supported.

  • The provider had reviewed the reasons for lower patient satisfaction in the GP national survey for patient experience of their interaction with GPs.

However, there were still areas of practice where the provider could make improvements.

The provider should:

  • Develop a more detailed significant event reporting template and undertaking a regular analysis of significant events to identify trends and monitor the effectiveness of any changes made.

  • Improve the monitoring and documentation of infection control across the practice.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

04/08/2016

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Willow Bank Community Interest Company (Longton) on 4 August 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

  • Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.

  • The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.

  • Patients had access to seven day opening which enabled appointments to be made outside of traditional working hours. This included health screening and condition reviews.

  • There was a proactive culture within the practice for identifying and monitoring children and young patients that were at increased risk of harm.

  • The patient feedback we received about the practice was positive.

  • The practice was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

  • Most risks were well managed, although action was needed in the areas of acting upon alerts about medicines and the practice fire risk assessment in place.

The areas where the provider must make improvements are:

  • Implement an effective system to receive and act on alerts about medicines that may affect patients’ safety.

In addition the provider should:

  • Introduce a written policy for the identification and process of handling significant events.

  • Improve the monitoring of practice infection control compliance in-between audit cycles.

  • Introduce a process for regularly reviewing Patient Group Directions (PGDs) to ensure that they meet legislative requirements.

  • Improve the uptake of annual learning disability health assessments.

  • Investigate the reasons for lower patient satisfaction in the GP national survey for patient experience of their interaction with GPs.

  • Investigate the reasons for the higher than average attendance at A&E by registered patients.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice