The Care Quality Commission
  • Doctor
  • GP practice

Blackford House Medical Centre

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

137 Croft Lane, Hollins, Bury, Lancashire, BL9 8QA (0161) 766 6622

Provided and run by:
Blackford House Medical Centre

All Inspections

27 November 2023

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We carried out a targeted assessment of Blackford House Medical Centre in relation to the responsive key question. This assessment was carried out on 27 November 2023 without a site visit. The rating for the responsive key question is Good. As the other domains were not reviewed during this assessment, the rating of good will be carried forward from the previous inspection and the overall rating of the service will remain Good.

Safe – ‘not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection’.

Effective – ‘not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection’.

Caring – ‘not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection’.

Responsive – Good

Well-led – ‘not inspected, rating of good carried forward from previous inspection’.

The full reports for previous inspections can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Blackford House Medical Centre on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

Why we carried out this assessment.

We carried out this assessment as part of our work to understand how practices are working to try to meet demand for access and to better understand the experiences of people who use services and providers.

We recognise the work that GP practices have been engaged in to continue to provide safe, quality care to the people they serve. We know colleagues are doing this while demand for general practice remains exceptionally high, with more appointments being provided than ever. In this challenging context, access to general practice remains a concern for people. Our strategy makes a commitment to deliver regulation driven by people’s needs and experiences of care. These assessments of the responsive key question include looking at what practices are doing innovatively to improve patient access to primary care and sharing this information to drive improvement.

How we carried out the assessment

This assessment was carried out remotely.

This included:

  • Conducting staff interviews using video conferencing.
  • Requesting evidence from the provider and reviewing the appointment system.
  • Speaking with a member of the patient participation group

Our findings

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

  • what we found when we carried out the assessment
  • information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
  • information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

We found that:

  • The practice understood the needs of its local population.
  • Patients could access care and treatment in a timely way and the provider had implemented systems and processes as a result of patient feedback to further improvements.
  • The practice worked with their patients and Patient Participation Group to identify where they might improve.
  • Patients were satisfied with the access to appointments offered by the practice. This was reflected in the National GP survey and local practice surveys.
  • The practice dealt with complaints in a timely manner and learned from them.

Whilst we found no breaches of regulations, the provider should:

  • Continue to take action to improve access for patients.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Dr Sean O’Kelly BSc MB ChB MSc DCH FRCA

Chief Inspector of Health Care

28/01/2019

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Blackford House Medical Centre on 28 January 2019 as part of our inspection programme.

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

  • what we found when we inspected
  • information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
  • information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

We have rated this practice as good overall and good for all population groups.

We found that:

  • The practice provided care in a way that kept patients safe and protected them from avoidable harm. Risks to patients’ care were monitored with prompt action taken when necessary.
  • Patients received effective care and treatment that met their needs. Regular multi-disciplinary team meetings took place to ensure patients’ holistic care needs were met.
  • Staff dealt with patients with kindness and respect and involved them in decisions about their care.
  • The practice organised and delivered services to meet patients’ needs. Patients could access care and treatment in a timely way. The appointment system was flexible to encourage patient attendance and accommodate patients’ routines and lifestyles.
  • The leadership promoted the delivery of high-quality, patient centred care. There were systems to ensure that GPs and all other staff were well trained and supported in their role. The practice had a comprehensive programme of quality improvement and used information about care and treatment to make improvements.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice

12 July 2016

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced  comprehensive inspection at Blackford House Medical Practice on 12 July 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 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 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.
  • The practice was registered with the Dementia Action Alliance and the practice was dementia friendly. Reception staff were trained in dementia care so they could offer additional support patients and their carers when they visited the practice.
  • The GP lead on dementia care had organised a dementia support day for patients with dementia and their carers. This involved running two workshops; one for the patients with dementia and one for their carers.
  • Two student  psychology sessions had been arranged to support the cares of patients with dementia.   They included a  general taster session and a session on how memory works and tips on how to enhance memory in a dementia patient.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice