Shay Lane Medical Centre

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Shay Lane Medical Practice on 24 March 2016. 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 a system in place for reporting and recording significant events.

• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed with the exception of checks for reception staff who were used as chaperones. However these had been identified and addressed before the inspection.

• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• 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. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and 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.

We saw an area of outstanding practice:

Learning arising out a significant event led to one of the GPs refining and developing the information templates used within the patient electronic system in order to minimise the same error arising again. Information was shared with neighbouring practices at a GP Forum within the Clinical Commissioning Group and feedback for the presentation was very positive. As a result of the presentation the new template has been adopted by the other practices minimising the error throughout the CCG.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are as follows :

• Introduce a system to manage clinical and non-clinical meetings more effectively and record and disseminate information therefrom.

• Install an emergency chord in the disabled toilet.

• Introduce a Patient Participation Group who meet in person with the practice to reflect the views of the patient population.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP

Chief Inspector of General Practice