England’s Chief Inspector of General Practice has taken a Gateshead GP practice out of special measures following improvements in the quality of its services.
Dr Syed Masroor Imam’s practice on Jackson Street in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear was rated Inadequate under the Care Quality Commission's new approach to the inspection of GP practices following an inspection in January 2015, and was put into special measures.
When CQC inspected Dr Syed Masroor’s practice in January 2015, inspectors identified seven areas for improvement. The practice was rated Inadequate for being safe, effective and well-led and Requires Improvement for being caring and responsive.
In the latest inspection in September, a specialist team of inspectors found that the practice had improved in all five key areas. The overall rating for the practice has moved from Inadequate to Good. The practice was rated as Good for providing services that were safe, effective, caring and responsive, and Requires Improvement for providing services that are well led.
Inspectors rated the practice Good for providing services to older people, people with long term conditions, families, children and young people, people of working age and people experiencing poor mental health. The practice was rated as Requires Improvement for providing service to people whose circumstances make them vulnerable.
A copy of the report from this latest inspection has been published on the CQC website today.
Professor Steve Field, Chief Inspector of General Practice, said:
"It is clear that Dr Syed Masroor Imam has made improvements since our original inspection when we had serious concerns relating to the safe delivery of services and the leadership of the practice.
"With the support of NHS England and Newcastle Gateshead Clinical Commissioning Group, the practice has been able to make improvements, and is now providing an accessible, safe and clinically effective service.
“There are some further improvements the practice needs to make to strengthen leadership and ensure the changes they have made are sustained in the long term and the practice must continue the work already underway with regard to these issues.
“I am pleased to announce that Dr Syed Masroor Imam’s practice will come out of special measures and I congratulate him and his staff on the progress that they have made so far.
“We will return in due course to follow up on the remaining areas where improvements are required.”
Sue McMillan, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice for the North of England, said:
“When we inspected the practice in September 2015 we found improvements had been made in all areas. There was an open and transparent approach to reporting significant events and the practice had developed a strong learning culture.
“Action had been taken to address gaps in staff training and ensure that staff were supported by regular appraisals.
“The practice had made improvements in order to better manage the risks associated with infection control and safe medicines management, and the previous shortfalls in recruitment processes had been addressed.
“Progress had also been made to strengthen governance arrangements, however further work is needed in this area to fully embed the changes and make better use of patient feedback to drive continued improvements”
Inspectors found that staff understood their responsibilities to raise concerns and to report incidents and near misses, and systems were in place to ensure incidents were recorded and investigated.
Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidelines. Patients spoke positively about the practice and told inspectors that staff were helpful and treated them with dignity and respect.
Staff had received appropriate training and further training needs had been identified and planned for.
The practice had taken steps to address governance arrangements and the practice manager demonstrated a desire to lead, learn and continually improve. Staff felt supported by management and worked well as a team.
The practice was part of a recently introduced extended access scheme, which made it easier for patients to see a GP in the evening or at weekends.
The inspection also identified some areas for improvement, including:
- The practice should review and formalise the arrangements in place for staffing in the reception area to ensure they can meet the needs of patients at all times.
- The practice should ensure the arrangements in place for seeing and treating homeless patients reflect the latest guidance.
- The practice must ensure the sustainability of the practice in the longer term through the development and delivery of business plans and plans for improvement.
Ends
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Find out more
Read our reports about Dr Syed Masroor Imam.
I congratulate him and his staff on the progress that they have made so far.
Professor Steve Field, Chief Inspector of General Practice