Halifax GP Surgery rated as Outstanding by the CQC

The Care Quality Commission has found the quality of care provided by Rosegarth Surgery in Halifax, West Yorkshire, to be Outstanding following an inspection in April 2015.

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

The inspection team, which included a GP and a practice manager as specialist advisors, , rated the services provided by Rosegarth Surgery as Outstanding overall and Outstanding for providing services to older patients, and to people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable.

A full report of the inspection has been published today.

The surgery located at Rothwell Mount, in Halifax, serves over 9,800 patients.

The report highlights a number of areas of outstanding practice, including:

• The practice had employed an advanced nurse practitioner (ANP) to case manage registered patients who were resident across nine local care homes. As a consequence, over a 12 month period there had been a significant reduction in unplanned hospital admissions and a decrease in the length of stay for an admission.
• There was evidence of multidisciplinary working with local care homes, local district nursing teams and secondary care, this was supported by the use of shared care plans. The ANP also provided education and support to the staff who worked within those care settings. This had enabled those staff to feel more confident about caring for those patients, especially in relation to end of life care.
• The practice had a comprehensive system for identifying and supporting patients who had a learning disability. They used an individualised ‘my health action plan’ with all those patients. The plan was individualised to each patient and contained personal details, name of their GP and specific information, for example what the patient liked to be called and any specific questions they had about their care.

Sue McMillan, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice in the North, said:

“It is clear Rosegarth Surgery is providing an effective and responsive service which is a real asset to the people living in this part West Yorkshire.

“Feedback from patients was excellent and staff made every effort to fully involve people in decisions about their care and treatment.

 “There was a strong desire to learn at the practice, staff were highly engaged and committed to improving quality of care and ensured regular reviews were held for people with long term conditions.

“The practice was actively involved in community care, being the first point of call for health matters to residents of local care homes. Helping people avoid unnecessary hospital visits and reduce their admission time.

“Staff demonstrated a comprehensive approach in managing the differing needs of their patients, proactively gathering feedback, and reflected these needs when planning and delivering services. 

“This is a great example of what outstanding care looks like.”

Ends

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