Updated 6 February 2024
We carried out an announced assessment of one quality statement, equity of access, under the key question responsive at The Surgery (Holes Lane Surgery) on the 12 March 2024. Responsive assessments are remote focused reviews to help us understand what practices are doing to try to meet patient demand and the current experience of people who use these services and of providers. The responsive key question is still rated as good. The service remains rated as good overall. We recognise the work that GP practices have been engaged in to continue to provide safe, quality care to the people they serve. We know staff are doing this while demand for general practice remains exceptionally high, with more appointments being provided than ever. In this challenging context, access to general practice remains a concern for people. Our strategy makes a commitment to deliver regulation driven by people’s needs and experiences of care. The assessment of the quality statement equity of access includes looking at what practices are doing innovatively to improve patient access to primary care and sharing this information to drive improvement. At this assessment we found: People can access services when they need to, without physical or digital barriers, including out of normal hours and in an emergency. People are given support to overcome barriers to ensure equal access. Although the provider had made improvements and more recent patient feedback from other sources indicated satisfaction had improved, data from the GP national patient survey indicated low satisfaction levels. The practice understood the challenges to patient access and responded to patient needs.