Old Harlow Health Centre

Updated 10 March 2020

Old Harlow health Centre in located in Old Harlow, Essex and provides GP services to approximately 9,100 patients in Essex. Old Harlow Health Centre is part of the West Essex Clinical Commissioning Group.

There are four GP partners who provide services at the location. They are supported by a salaried doctor, three practice nurses and a practice manager. The practice is a training practice, supporting qualified doctors become GPs.

A number of patients with complex health needs who had been relocated from London and other boroughs into converted office blocks in Harlow through the permitted developments rights scheme. This practice allows for the conversion of non-residential buildings without planning permission and accommodation is utilised by a number of councils to house people who have presented as in urgent need of housing; inhabitants may be displaced, living outside of their usual support networks with complex health needs and have limited access to amenities.

The practice provides care and treatment to those who have recently been discharged from prison to a local hotel.

Updated 10 March 2020

We carried out an announced focused inspection at Old Harlow Health Centre on 28th January 2020 as part of our inspection programme.

We decided to undertake an inspection of this service following our annual review of the information available to us. This inspection looked at the following key questions:

• Is the practice effective?
• Is the practice well-led?

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service is 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 outstanding overall.

We rated the practice as outstanding for providing effective services because:

• Outcomes for people who used services were consistently better than expected when compared with other similar services. The practice worked with hard to reach groups to make services accessible.
• Staff were proactively supported and encouraged to acquire new skills, use their transferable skills, and share best practice.
• The practice was committed to working collaboratively and had found innovative and efficient ways to deliver more joined-up care to people who use services.
• There was a holistic approach to assessing, planning and delivering care and treatment and the practice identified innovative and efficient ways to deliver more joined-up care to patients.

We rated the practice as outstanding for providing well-led services because:

• Partners and the practice manager using their leadership roles to improve patient-care both at the practice and for other practices within the primary care network (PCN).
• There was a strong collaboration, team-working and support across all functions and a common focus on improving the quality and sustainability of care and people’s experiences.
• There were consistently high levels of constructive engagement with staff and patients, including all equality groups.

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

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP

Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care

Updated 10 March 2020

Updated 10 March 2020

Updated 10 March 2020

Updated 10 March 2020

Updated 10 March 2020

Updated 10 March 2020