Albany Practice

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

This practice was last assessed in 2021 and caring was rated as requires improvement. At this assessment, we assessed all the quality statements for this key question, and we found that significant improvements had been made.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Patients that the inspection team spoke to during the site visit informed us that the reception staff were friendly, however, they felt there was a need for better interaction with the clinical staff as sometimes the appointments with the doctors felt rushed. The percentage of respondents to the GP patient survey who indicated that they had confidence and trust in the health care professional they spoke to or saw during their last general practice appointment was slightly lower than the England averages. The percentage of respondents to the GP patient survey who indicated that the healthcare professional was good at treating them with care and concern during the last general practice appointment was below the England average. To rectify this, the practice had drawn an action plan to improve patient satisfaction.

Staff understood the patient population and their needs. Staff understood the personal, religious and cultural needs of the patients and provided care and treatment that reflected this. This was seen in how the practice responded to complaints.

It was observed that the staff were friendly and showed care for the patients and this was evident in the drive by the staff to improve on patient care and service delivery.

The percentage of respondents to the GP patient survey who indicated that the health care professional was good at listening to them during the last appointment was below the England average. To rectify this, the practice had drawn an action plan to improve patient satisfaction.

Staff said they listened to the people and supported them as much as they could.

People’s medical records were individualised, and service and treatment given was person-centred. The wishes of the patients were clearly recorded and shared with relevant health care professionals. The practice conducted its own survey and analysed the result found to improve service delivery. All policies that the practice held were up to date and they all reflected the human rights principles. Staff were chaperoned trained to support patients who required such services.

The feedback from the people did not show any concern that related to independence, choice and control.

Staff told us that the practice had drawn up an action plan to improve patient experience and satisfaction following the analysis of the GP patient 2024 survey which showed that 75% of respondents felt that they were involved in decisions about their care and treatment which was below national and local averages.

People could access information in the practice and on the website to support them to make healthier choices.

Feedback from patients we spoke to during the site visit concerning how their immediate needs were met was both positive and negative. This was also corroborated by the performance data which showed the practice was below national average. However, the practice had drawn up measures to improve patient experience.

Staff informed us that complaints were dealt with in a timely manner and outcomes included lessons learned and an action plan to prevent recurrence. NHS health checks and learning disability (LD) health checks were offered to eligible patients and completed with those who responded while others were continued to be encouraged to attend health checks and reviews.

Staff we spoke to were happy to work at the practice and said they felt supported by the management of the practice. The staff wellbeing action plan shared with the Care Quality Commission showcased what had been done in the past year to improve staff wellbeing. This included the circulating and sharing of a staff wellbeing application for meditation, wellness, exercise and sleep. Regular incentives were given to staff as well as vouchers for leavers, lunch for completion of training, gifts for all staff at festive periods such as at Christmas.

Staff at the practice were offered flexible working and revised working hours to ensure a work-life balance. Staff were regularly updated on changes and offered relevant trainings to support them in their roles. Minutes of staff meetings were documented and shared with relevant staff.