A GP practice in Norfolk has been rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and placed in special measures following an inspection in March.
Manor Farm Medical Centre, Swaffham, was inspected to assess the levels of care and treatment it provided to people. The inspection also contributed to CQC’s wider review of emergency care in the Norfolk and Waveney area.
The inspection found there had been a deterioration overall in the safety of services provided.
As well as being rated inadequate overall, the service was rated inadequate for being safe and well-led. It was rated requires improvement for being effective and rated good for being caring and responsive to people’s needs.
As the service is now in special measures, it will be monitored closely by the CQC and re-inspected within six months to assess whether the necessary improvements have been made.
Andy Brand, CQC head of inspection for primary medical services, said:
”It was disappointing to find that standards of care and treatment provided by Manor Farm Medical Centre had dropped significantly and fallen below the levels that people have a right to expect.
“We found concerns that medicines weren’t being prescribed safely, which put people at risk of avoidable harm. In addition we found concerns relating to processes in the practice dispensary.
“We did find that staff treated patients with kindness and respect and that people were involved in decisions about their care, and we hope that with the right support, the service will make the necessary improvements to ensure patient safety.
“We will re-inspect the service again in the coming months to ensure the necessary improvements have been made.
The findings of the latest inspection found:
- Not all patients received safe and effective care or treatment that met their needs.
- The care provided didn’t always keep people safe or protect them from avoidable harm.
- The practice wasn’t led and managed in a way that promoted high-quality, person-centred care.
- Recruitment processes and assessments didn’t ensure staff were fully competent for their roles.
- The practice didn’t ensure all medicines were safely prescribed to all patients.
- Complaints were heard and responded to, but they weren’t used to improve the quality of care provided.
However:
- Patients were treated with kindness and respect.
- People were involved in decisions about their care.
- The service adjusted how it delivered its services to meet the needs of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- People could access care and treatment in a timely way.
Manor Farm Medical Centre has been told by CQC that, in order to comply with its legal obligations, it must:
- Ensure care and treatment is provided in a safe way to patients
- Establish effective systems and processes to ensure good governance supports the fundamental standards of care.
Full details of the inspection are given in the report published on our website.
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