Polesworth and Dordon Group Practice Also known as Dordon and Polesworth Group Practice

Updated 12 September 2016

Polesworth & Dordon Group Practice is located in the village of Dordon, near Tamworth. It is a group practice which provides primary medical services to patients in a semi-rural area. It is a former coal mining area, with a large prevalence of older patients with long term medical conditions.

The practice has a dispensary for use by patients and there is a branch surgery in the nearby village of Polesworth. This also has its own dispensary.

The practice is located in a converted facility and had 2,656 patients registered at the time of our inspection. Most patients speak English as a first language. It has a General Medical Services (GMS) contract with NHS England. The GMS contract is the contract between general practices and NHS England for delivering primary care services to local communities. The practice is a member of a local GP federation, a group of practices that work together and share ideas to improve patient care.

The practice has six GP partners and one salaried GP (a mix of male and female. In addition, there is a nurse practitioner (able to issue prescriptions), four practice nurses and two healthcare assistants. They are supported by a practice manager and administrative and reception staff. The practice dispensary has its own dedicated staff. The practice made major changes to its GP partnerships and management 12 months ago following a challenging period.

The practice is open from 8am to 1pm and from 2pm until 6pm during the week. Appointments are available throughout these times. Phone lines are open until 6.30pm and there is a duty GP available throughout the day from 8am to 6.30pm. The practice does not offer extended hours opening having found in the past there was little patient demand for it. When the practice is closed, patients can access out of hours care provided by Care UK through NHS 111. The practice has a recorded message on its telephone system to advise patients. This information is also available on the practice’s website.

Home visits are available for patients who are unable to attend the practice for appointments. There is also an online service which allows patients to order repeat prescriptions and book new appointments without having to telephone the practice. Telephone appointments are available for patients who are unable to reach the practice during normal working hours.

Management of the local care homes, learning disability homes, and funeral provider have a direct access telephone number to use to contact the practice. The youth worker at the local high school also has access to this line.

The practice treats patients of all ages and provides a range of medical services. This includes minor surgery and disease management such as asthma, diabetes and heart disease. Other appointments are available for minor surgery, blood tests, insulin initiation, family planning, post-natal follow up and smoking cessation amongst others.

The practice also provides services to two local care homes and some homes occupied by patients with learning disabilities.

Updated 12 September 2016

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Polesworth & Dordon Group Practice

on 11 July 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

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

• There were clear processes and procedures to ensure patients were safe and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events. They were fully reviewed at every staff meeting.

• Feedback from patients about their care was highly positive. We received 26 completed comment cards with entirely positive comments.

• Same day appointments All patients we spoke with and those who completed comment cards before our inspection said they were always able to obtain same day appointments.

• The practice reviewed the needs of the local population and made appropriate changes when necessary. For example, changes to the staffing policy were made so staff could be interchangeable between locations to ensure adequate staffing was available in times of unexpected high demand.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care delivered in line with current guidelines. Staff had the appropriate skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Patients told us they said they were treated with dignity, respect and compassion. Patients were involved decisions about their care and treatment.
• The practice had strong clinical and managerial leadership and governance. Following a period of difficulty and change 12 months ago, the practice had strengthened its management and redefined lead roles to provide greater clarity and effectiveness.
• Information about how to complain was available and easy to understand. The practice received very few complaints from patients and reviewed complaints to ensure lessons learned were not repeated.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.

However there were areas of practice where the provider should make improvements:

• The practice should ensure they continue to adhere to the staff training and action plan.

• Review the procedure for patients collecting controlled drugs to ensure signatures are obtained when required.

• The practice should continue to closely monitor patient satisfaction results to ensure further improvements are made.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 12 September 2016

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

• Patients had a named GP and a review every six to 12 months to monitor their condition and ensure they received correct medicines. The frequency of the review depended on the severity of the patient’s condition. The practice had developed its own system for managing these appointments.

• All patients with a long term condition had a condition management plan which was reviewed annually.

• Nursing staff had received appropriate training in chronic disease management, for example asthma and diabetes.

• The practice provided education events about asthma and COPD.

• Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed.

• Health checks for patients with long term conditions were available during extended hours appointments.

Updated 12 September 2016

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

• Systems were in place to identify children and young people who might be at risk, for example, those who had a high number of A&E attendances.

• The practice worked closely with the local health visitor team.
• The community matron had a base within the practice building and was regarded as part of the practice team.

• A total of 82% of eligible patients had received cervical screening in the last 12 months. This was comparable with the national average of 81%.

• There were appointments outside of school hours and the practice building was suitable for children and babies.

• Well baby clinics were available.

• Outcomes for areas such as child vaccinations were mostly above average for the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).

• A full range of family planning services were available.

• All practice staff had received training in how to recognise and deal with domestic abuse.

Updated 12 September 2016

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

• Older patients were given personalised care which reflected their needs. The practice recognised the local population was increasing in average age.

• Elderly and frail patients were prioritised for same day appointments.

• Care plans were in place with the most vulnerable older patients and used with multi-disciplinary teams to reduce unplanned hospital admissions. These patients had an alert placed on their patient records to ensure clinical staff were aware.

• The practice closely monitored patients who received multiple medicines and those who lived in care homes. This included falls prevention advice in the latter.

• GPs visited care homes twice weekly.

• The practice had a dedicated telephone line used by the care homes it served.

• Home visits were offered to patients who could not reach the practice.

• Over the last 12 months all patients aged 75 and over had been invited for a health check. This included blood tests, fracture assessment, frailty assessment, and checks for depression and dementia. From those checks, the practice identified patients who needed further investigation and referred them appropriately.

• Nationally reported data showed that outcomes for patients were good for conditions commonly found in older people.

Updated 12 September 2016

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

• The practice ensured it provided services to meet the needs of the working age population, For example, telephone consultations were available for patients who were unable to reach the practice during the day.

• Following feedback from patients, the practice introduced dedicated early and late appointment slots with priority given to the working age population.

• A full range of services appropriate to this age group was offered, including family planning, smoking cessation and travel vaccinations.

• Health checks for patients within this population group were actively promoted.

Updated 12 September 2016

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

• Staff demonstrated a good working knowledge of how to support patients with mental health needs and dementia.

• A carer support protocol was in place to offer carers both physical and psychological support.

• The practice worked with multi-disciplinary teams to provide appropriate care for patients with poor mental health. This included patients with dementia.

• Patients who were diagnosed with depression received a follow up from a GP within eight weeks of diagnosis.

• Patients were signposted to appropriate local and national support groups.

• All patients aged over 65 received a cognitive test as part of their routine health check.

Updated 12 September 2016

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

• Staff could recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. Staff were aware of their responsibilities to share appropriate information, record safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in normal working hours and out of hours.

• The practice closely monitored patients who received multiple medicines and those who lived in local learning disability homes.

• The practice had a dedicated telephone line used by the learning disability homes it served.

• The practice supported vulnerable patients to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.

• There was a register of vulnerable patients including those with a learning disability.

• Longer appointments were available for patients with a learning disability.

• The practice worked with other health care professionals to provide care to vulnerable patients, for example, the district nursing team.