Nottinghamshire GP practice is rated as Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission

The Care Quality Commission has found the quality of care provided by Family Medical Centre in Nottingham, to be Outstanding following an inspection in March.

Inspectors found the practice was providing a safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led service that meets the needs of the population it serves.

A full report of the inspection has now been published.

Under CQC’s new programme of inspections, all England’s GP practices are being given a rating according to whether they are safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led.

The report on Family Medical Centre highlights a number of areas of outstanding practice, including:

• The practice was committed to working with people whose circumstances might make them vulnerable. For example; the practice had a long history of working with homeless patients across Nottingham. In addition to removing barriers for these patients to access services at the practice, they undertook outreach clinics in local hostels on a weekly basis. Weekly substance misuse clinics were run from the practice.
• Staff had received training in domestic violence awareness and had dedicated domestic violence champions. The practice worked closely with local services providing support to people who had suffered domestic violence.
• There was a high level of engagement with younger people. For example, the practice had dedicated leaflets for younger people explaining the service they provided at the practice and detailing other services which were available in the local area including sexual health services. In order to ensure they were accessible to younger people the practice had worked with a local young people’s organisation, Future Pulse, to review their services.

Janet Williamson, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice and Dentistry in CQC’s Central region said:

“It is clear Family Medical Centre is providing an effective, responsive and well led service which is a real asset to the people living in this part of Nottinghamshire.

“High standards were promoted and owned by all practice staff and teams worked together across all roles. There was a low staff turnover and many staff had worked within the practice for more than ten years. A number of the practice partners were former GP trainees who returned to work at the practice following their training.

“The practice demonstrated a systematic approach to working with other organisations in the area to improve outcomes and tackle health inequalities. For example, the practice had worked with other organisations to support their most vulnerable patients including domestic violence support organisations and homeless services.

“All of this hard work pays off in making a real difference to patients – which is why we have found this practice to be Outstanding.”

Ends

For further information, please contact Regional Engagement Officer, Helen Gildersleeve on 0191 233 3379.

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