The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found the quality of care provided by Dr Sobia Khaliq at Birkby Health Centre, Huddersfield to be Good after an inspection in April 2016.
During Birkby Health Centre’s first inspection in October 2015, the service was provided by Dr Manohar Singh. CQC rated the surgery as Inadequate and placed it into special measures.
As is standard with all practices placed into special measures, after a period of six months we inspect again to check whether sufficient improvements have been made.
Dr Janet Williamson, CQC’s Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice said:
“We did not believe that the practice was likely to resolve its challenges without external support, and this is why it was placed it into special measures.
“After a period of six months we inspected again and were pleased to see a number of significant improvements made by the surgery to raise the standard of care they provide to their local community.”
The previous provider cancelled his registration and Dr Sobia Khaliq has been registered as the new provider for Birkby Health Centre since January 2016.
During this latest inspection, inspectors found that the practice had made significant progress in addressing concerns that had been identified in October 2015.
For example, shortfalls in staff training and recruitment checks had been addressed, infection control procedures and the management of temperature sensitive vaccines was more effectively managed and clinical audits were being used to drive improvements in patient care. A new practice manager and nurse had been appointed and Dr Khaliq had sought external support and advice to improve services.
Other key findings at this inspection included:
- Policies and procedures that had been previously lacking or overdue for review had been drafted and were being introduced across the practice.
- Risks to patients were assessed and well managed. A comprehensive infection control audit by a specialist external provider had concluded that the practice managed a safe environment for patients and staff.
- Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
- The appointment system had been overhauled and patients were able to access urgent care with less delay and greater flexibility.
- The practice had reenergised the patient reference group and proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
Dr Janet Williamson added:
“Although the practice had made significant improvements with a new provider , it will take time for them to demonstrate that the level of improvement they’ve shown can be sustained. We encourage them to keep working with partners to look at ways of improving the practice further and more importantly how they can sustain those changes until the next time we inspect and beyond.”
A copy of the CQC’s report on Birkby Health Centre can be found on our website: www.cqc.org.uk/location/1-2317503291.
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