Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Southam Surgery on 16 February 2016. The overall rating for this service is good.
Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:
- Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance. Staff told us and records showed that training appropriate to their roles had been carried out. Staff training needs had been identified and planned for the following year.
- Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns and report incidents and near misses. Learning from incidents was shared with relevant staff at meetings relevant to their roles and responsibilities, although this was not always fully documented.
- Information was provided to help patients understand the care available to them. Patients told us they were treated kindly and respectfully by staff at the practice. Their treatment options were explained to them so they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
- The practice was well equipped and had good facilities to treat patients and meet their needs.
- The practice implemented suggestions for improvements and made changes to the way it delivered services as a consequence of feedback from patients and from the Patient Participation Group (PPG).
- Information about how to complain was easy to understand and available in practice leaflets and on the practice website.
- 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.
However there are areas where improvements are needed.
The areas the provider should make improvements are:
- Ensure that the infection control measures in place are followed and applied consistently by all staff.
- Establish an agenda to ensure that significant events are routinely discussed or reviewed in meetings to provide an audit trail that demonstrates the learning and sharing of information.
Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice