Archived: Birtle View Medical Practice

Updated 21 January 2016

Birtle View Medical Practice provides primary medical services in Heywood from Monday to Friday. The practice is open between 8am and 7pm Monday and Wednesday and between 8am and 6.30pm Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Extended hours are offered between 8am and 11am on Saturday. The first appointment of the day is 8.15am Monday to Friday and 8am on Saturday and last appointments are 6.30pm Monday and Wednesday, 6pm Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 10.30am on Saturday.

Birtle View Medical Practice is situated within the geographical area of Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Commissioning Group (CCG).

The practice has an Alternative Primary Medical Services (APMS) contract. The APMS contract is the contract between general practices and NHS England for delivering primary care services to local communities.

Birtle View Medical Practice is responsible for providing care to 2203 patients.

The practice consists of two male GPs and one long term female locum GP, a practice nurse and a health care assistant. The practice is supported by a practice manager, administration and receptionists.

When the practice is closed patients were directed to the out of hour’s service.

Updated 21 January 2016

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Birtle View Medical Practice on 18 November 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.

• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.

• Feedback from patients about their care was consistently and strongly positive.

• Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand.
• 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.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the Duty of Candour.

One area of outstanding practice was that the practice had proactive contact with patients with poor memory to remind them of appointments by text or telephone.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 21 January 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people with long-term conditions.

• Nursing staff had lead roles in chronic disease management and patients at risk of hospital admission were identified as a priority.
• Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed.
• This group of patients had a named GP and a structured annual review including a medication review to check that their health and medicines needs were being met. For those people with the most complex needs, the named GP worked with relevant health and care professionals to deliver a multidisciplinary package of care.
• Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) had self management plans and access to medication at home for acute exacerbations and were directed to a structured education programme.

Updated 21 January 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of families, children and young people.

• There were systems in place to identify and follow up children living in disadvantaged circumstances and who were at risk, for example, children and young people who had a high number of A&E attendances. Immunisation rates were high for all standard childhood immunisations.
• There were systems in place to follow up all patients that did not attend for screening appointments such as cervical smear and breast screening.
• Patients told us that children and young people were treated in an age-appropriate way and were recognised as individuals, and we saw evidence to confirm this.
• 82.5% of women aged between 25 and 64 had a cervical smear test recorded in their notes in the preceding 5 years.
• Appointments were available outside of school hours and the premises were suitable for children and babies.
• We saw good examples of joint working with midwives, health visitors and school nurses.
• The practice offered advice, information, support and onward referrals for smoking cessation, weight management, alcohol and drug misuse. There is a Healthy Lifestyles clinic run fortnightly at the practice.
• The practice offered all new patients over the age of 5 years a new patient health check.
• All patients under 12 years were offered a same day telephone appointment and a face to face appointment where necessary.
• New baby registration packs were given to the parents of all new born babies.

Updated 21 January 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of older people.

• The practice offered proactive, personalised care to meet the needs of the older patients in its population.
• It was responsive to the needs of older patients, and offered home visits and urgent appointments for those with enhanced needs.
• Older patients were offered health checks and advice regarding the appropriate screening for their age group.
• All patients over the age of 75 had a named GP.
• The practice offered a range of appropriate immunisations such as pneumococcal, flu and shingles.
• Osteoporosis risk assessments were carried out on patients aged over 75 years.

Updated 21 January 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of working-age people (including those recently retired and students).

• The needs of the working age population, those recently retired and students had been identified and the practice had adjusted the services it offered to ensure these were accessible, flexible and offered continuity of care.
• The practice was proactive in offering online services as well as a full range of health promotion and screening that reflects the needs for this age group including bowel cancer screening.
• There was a range of appointments available including Saturday mornings and telephone appointments.
• The practice offered text message reminders for appointments.

Updated 21 January 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia).

• 100% of people diagnosed with dementia had had their care reviewed in a face to face meeting in the last 12 months.
• 100% of patients with schizophrenia, bipolar affectice disorder and other pyschoses have a comprehensive, agreed care plan documented in their record in the preceding 12 months.
• The practice regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of people experiencing poor mental health, including those with dementia.
• It carried out advance care planning for patients with dementia.
• The practice had told patients experiencing poor mental health about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.
• It had a system in place to follow up patients who had attended accident and emergency where they may have been experiencing poor mental health.
• Staff had a good understanding of how to support people with mental health needs and dementia.
• The practice has proactive contact with patients with poor memory to remind them of appointments by text or telephone.
• Primary mental heath teams are able to book rooms so that patients can be seen locally if this is more convenient to the patient.

Updated 21 January 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable.

• The practice offered same day access for face to face urgent appointments and when necessary access via telephone consultations.

• The practice held a register of patients living in vulnerable circumstances including homeless people, travellers and those with a learning disability.
• It offered longer appointments for people with a learning disability.
• The practice regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of vulnerable people.
• It had told vulnerable patients about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.
• Care plans were in place for those patients with long term problems in conjuction with specialist services.
• Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. Staff were aware of their responsibilities regarding information sharing, documentation of safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in normal working hours and out of hours.