Archived: The Crookes Practice

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Crookes Practice, which is one of the four Extended Access Hub sites across Sheffield, on 23 October 2017. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and a system in place for reporting, recording and actioning significant events. However, it was not evident how lessons learned from significant events were disseminated and shared with staff working across the Hub sites.
• The service had clearly defined and embedded systems to minimise risks to patient safety.
• Staff were aware of current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills and knowledge to deliver effective care and treatment.
• CQC comment cards and the NHS friends and family survey data showed patients were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
• Patients we spoke with were very satisfied with the availability and timeliness of their appointments.
• Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• The premises had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The service sought feedback from patients, which it acted on.

We saw one area of outstanding practice:

• The service offered physiotherapy appointments. Patients could book directly into these appointments via their own GP practice. Provider data between July and September 2017 showed that 90% of patients seen with joint pain had required only one appointment for self management advice. The physiotherapist could refer patients directly through the local musculoskeletal pathway if appropriate.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

• Review how learning and development from significant events and complaints could be fedback and shared to staff working across the four Hub sites.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP 

Chief Inspector of General Practice