Background to this inspection
Updated
30 July 2021
Station Road Surgery is located in Sidcup at:
69 Station Road
Sidcup
Kent
DA15 7DS
The provider is registered with CQC to deliver the Regulated Activities: treatment of disease, disorder or injury, maternity and midwifery services, surgical procedures, family planning and diagnostic and screening procedures.
The practice is situated within the South East London Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and delivers Personal Medical Services (PMS) to a patient population of about 9,995 people. This is part of a contract held with NHS England.
Information published by Public Health England shows that deprivation within the practice population group is level 9 out of 10. The lower the decile is on this scale, the more deprived the practice population is relative to others.
According to the latest available data, the ethnic make-up of the practice area is 5% Asian, 90% White, 2% Black, 2% Mixed, and 1% Other.
The practice is a training practice and has five GPs, two of which are GP trainers. The practice employs a nurse practitioner, two practice nurses and one healthcare assistant. The practice has a practice manager, an assistant practice manager, three administration assistants, seven receptionists and a team of three secretaries.
Due to the enhanced infection prevention and control measures put in place since the pandemic and in line with the national guidance, most GP appointments were telephone consultations.
Updated
30 July 2021
We carried out an announced review of Station Road Surgery on 25 June 2021. Overall, the practice is rated as good.
Responsive – good
Following our previous inspection on 5 February 2020, the practice was rated Good overall and for all key questions but requires improvement for providing responsive care.
The full reports for previous inspections can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Station Road Surgery on our website at www.cqc.org.uk
Why we carried out this review
This review was a focused review of information without undertaking a site visit to follow up on breaches of Regulation 9 Person-centred care.
At the last inspection we found:
- Wheelchair and pushchair users could not access the practice through the main entrance. Patients and other visitors who needed step-free access entered the building through the staff car park. However, there was no designated pedestrian route through the car park, to support safe access for these patients.
- There were difficulties getting through to the practice by telephone, which was reflected in the GP patient survey feedback and CQC comments cards received.
We also followed up on ‘should’ actions identified at the last inspection. Specifically:
- Review their website to ensure the information about clinics and services available in the practice is up to date.
How we carried out the review
Throughout the pandemic CQC has continued to regulate and respond to risk. However, taking into account the circumstances arising as a result of the pandemic, and in order to reduce risk, we have conducted our reviews differently.
This review was carried out without visiting the location, by requesting and reviewing documentary evidence from the provider.
Our findings
We found that:
- The practice had commissioned plans for an access ramp. Staff told us that they were unsure that the ramp (as designed) would meet people’s access needs and wanted to consider this further (with the contractor) before proceeding. The practice also consulted the Patient Participation Group for their views to ensure that any changes made would meet the needs of their patients.
- Reception staff had completed additional training on efficient call handling and staffing patterns had been adjusted to provide more staff to answer calls at peak times. The most recent GP patient survey results released in July 2021 showed these measures had led to improvements since the previous inspection.
- Although the practice website does not indicate that it is a Tier 2 diabetes service provider, it does state the ‘diabetes team will provide you with support, regular reviews and the day-to-day care of your needs.’
The areas where the provider should make improvements are:
- Continue to assess patient access to the premises and take action to address any areas of concern.
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