England’s Chief Inspector of General Practice has placed Iwade Health Centre, in Iwade, Sittingbourne, Kent into special measures following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission in June 2017.
Inspectors rated the service as Inadequate for being safe, effective and well-led, Requires Improvement for being responsive to people’s needs and Good for being caring.
A full report of this inspection has been published on our website today.
CQC has placed six urgent conditions on the provider’s registration to ensure the safety of patients. The conditions include:
- A restriction on new patients being registered;
- Action to clear the existing backlog of repeat prescription requests, medication reviews and correspondence
- The introduction of a system to ensure repeat prescription requests, medication reviews and correspondence are reviewed and dealt with
- An urgent review of patient demand to determine the correct level of service provision and resource;
- The provision of enough clinical staffing and appointments to deliver a safe service
- The introduction of effective clinical governance systems so that all patients can access timely and safe care
Ruth Rankine, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice CQC’s South region, said:
“As a result of this inspection we have placed Iwade Health Centre into special measures – and to protect patients we also placed a number of urgent conditions on the provider’s registration."
“Given the level of concerns we had in June, we have re-inspected the service in July and as a result are now taking further enforcement action with the support of the local clinical commissioning group."
“The report from the July inspection will be issued in due course. As always any enforcement action taken by CQC is subject to appeal and we are unable to comment further at this time.”
Key findings of CQC’s inspection included:
Inspectors found that there were not enough staff to keep patients safe. The clinical team at the practice had resigned and the practice was reliant on locum GPs and nurses. Substantial and frequent staff shortages and poor management of agency or locum staff increased the risk of harm to people who used the service.
There was no clear division between the local and the corporate leadership structure. Staff told inspectors they were unsure who had responsibility for the running of the service.
Appropriate recruitment checks had not been undertaken prior to staff being employed including Data and Barring service checks. There was insufficient evidence to show that staff had the skills and knowledge to deliver effective care and treatment.
There were insufficient processes in place to ensure the proper and safe management of medicines. End of life care was not being effectively coordinated.
CQC will continue to monitor the practice working closely with NHS England and Swale
Clinical Commissioning Group to ensure that patients are able to access a GP.
Ends
For further information please contact CQC Regional Engagement Officer Lara Orija on 07789 875 306.
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As a result of this inspection we have placed Iwade Health Centre into special measures
Ruth Rankine, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice CQC’s South region