Archived: Heatherbrook Surgery - RP Archer and CK Archer Also known as Heatherbrook Surgery

Updated 26 November 2015

Heatherbrook Surgery is located in the Beaumont Leys area of Leicester which is a relatively deprived area. The practice has 3,300 patients and is in a small purpose-built single-storey property. The clinical staff includes two GP partners, a salaried GP and a practice nurse  supported by administrative and reception staff. There are two male and two female clinical staff. It is a training practice which has medical students on placement and GP trainees (these are qualified doctors who are undergoing further training to become a GP). It has a General Medical Services (GMS) contract.

The surgery is open between 7.30am and 6.30pm Monday to Friday except on Thursdays when it closes at 4.30pm. Appointments are available from 7.30am for an average of just under eight hours each day. This includes bookable telephone consultations.

When the practice is closed out of hours services are provided by CNCS (Central Nottingham Clinical Services) accessed via NHS 111.

Updated 26 November 2015

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Heatherbrook Surgery (RK Archer and CK Archer) on 15 July 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good for providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-lead services.

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

• Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns, and to report incidents and near misses. Information about safety was recorded, monitored, appropriately reviewed and addressed.
• Risks to patients were assessed and generally well managed.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance. Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned.

• 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.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment with a named GP and that 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.

However there were areas where the provider should make improvements. The provider should:

• undertake complete two-cycle audits to ensure any learning is reviewed and monitored.
• ensure staff who act as chaperones are DBS checked or that the role is risk assessed.
• review its infection control policy and ensure people are kept safe from the risk of legionella.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 26 November 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of people with long-term conditions. Nursing staff and GPs had lead roles in chronic disease management. All patients with long-term conditions had a named GP and were offered an annual review to check that their health and medication needs were being met. Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed and patients at risk of hospital admission were identified as a priority. For those people with the most complex needs, the named GP worked with relevant health and care professionals to help deliver a multidisciplinary package of care.

Updated 26 November 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of families, children and young people. There were systems in place to identify and follow up children living in disadvantaged circumstances and who were at risk, for example, children and young people who attended A&E frequently. Immunisation rates were high for all standard childhood immunisations. Patients told us that children and young people were treated in an age-appropriate way and were recognised as individuals, and we saw evidence to confirm this. Appointments were available outside of school hours and the premises were suitable for children and babies. We saw good examples of joint working with midwives, health visitors and school nurses.

Updated 26 November 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of older people. The practice offered proactive, personalised care to meet the needs of the older people in its population (including those living in a local care home.) The practice had frequent contact with other healthcare professionals to share information and improve care. It was responsive to the needs of older people and offered home visits and rapid access appointments for those with complex needs.

Updated 26 November 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of working-age people (including those recently retired and students). The needs of the working age population, those recently retired and students had been identified and the practice had adjusted the services it offered to ensure these were accessible, flexible and offered continuity of care. The practice was proactive in offering online services as well as a full range of health promotion and screening that reflects the needs for this age group.

Updated 26 November 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia). People experiencing poor mental health had been offered an annual physical health check. The practice regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of people experiencing poor mental health, including those with dementia. It carried out advance care planning for patients with dementia.

The practice had provided information to patients experiencing poor mental health about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations. It had a system in place to follow up patients who had attended accident and emergency (A&E) when they may have been experiencing poor mental health. Staff had received training on how to care for people with mental health needs and dementia.

Updated 26 November 2015

The practice is rated as good for the care of people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable. The practice held a register of patients living in vulnerable circumstances including homeless people, travellers and those with a learning disability. It had carried out annual health checks for people with a learning disability and 95% of these patients had received a follow-up. It offered longer appointments for people with a learning disability.

The practice regularly worked with members of multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of vulnerable people. It had given vulnerable patients advice about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations. Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. Staff were aware of their responsibilities regarding information sharing, documentation of safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in and outside normal working hours.