Summertown Health Centre Also known as Summertown Group Practice

Updated 12 September 2016

Summertown Health Centre is the main surgery in the Summertown suburb of Oxford and has two branch surgeries in the villages of Wolvercote and Cutteslow on the outskirts of Oxford. The main practice is located in a three storey converted school. Both branch practices are in converted premises of single storey. The main practice is served by a number of bus routes. The branch surgeries have limited public transport access. All three sites offer disabled parking bays.

There are approximately 15,500 patients registered with the practice. Patients can be seen at any of the three practice sites. The practice has a higher than average number of patients aged under 18 and a large student population. This is because they are college doctors for five Oxford University colleges and for three local boarding schools. There are also a higher than average number of registered patients over the age of 75. Nationally reported data shows a low level of income deprivation among the practice population. However, the practice is aware of areas where income deprivation is an issue for their patients. This is most relevant among the population around the Cutteslow Surgery. Whilst there are a large number of non- British patients registered, mostly overseas students, use of English is not a significant issue among the registered population.

There are 12 GPs working at the practice. Five are partners and seven are salaried GPs. Four are male and eight female. They make up eight whole time GPs. Five practice nurses are supported by three health care assistants and phlebotomists. The practice manager is supported by a team of administration and reception staff. The practice is accredited to provide training for qualified doctors who are seeking to become GPs. Placements are offered for medical students.

The Summertown Health Centre practice is open between 8am and 6.30pm Monday to Friday. Opening times at the branch practices varied. At Wolvercote Surgery the opening hours are: Monday 8.30am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm, Tuesday and Wednesday 8.30am to 1pm, Thursday 8.30am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm on Friday. Cutteslow Surgery is open from 8.30am to 1pm and 2pm to 6.30pm on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. It opens from 8.30am to 6.30pm on a Thursday. Appointments are from 8.30am to 12pm and 3pm to 5.30pm daily. Extended hours appointments are offered on a Monday morning from 7am, Wednesday evening until 7.30pm and every Saturday morning between 8.30am and 10.30am.

The practice has opted out of providing out of hours services to their patients. The out of hours service is provided by Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and is accessed by calling NHS 111. Advice on how to access the out of hours service is contained in the practice leaflet, on the patient website and on a recorded message when the practice was closed.

Services are provided from:

Summertown Health Centre, 160 Banbury Road, Summertown, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX2 7BS;

Wolvercote Surgery, 73 Godstow Road, Wolvercote, Oxfordshire, OX2 8PE and

Cutteslow Surgery, 9 Kendall Crescent, Cutteslow, Oxfordshire, OX2 8NE

We visited both Summertown Health Centre and Wolvercote Surgery. We did not visit Ctteslow Surgery.

Updated 12 September 2016

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Summertown Health Centre on 13 July 2016. 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 an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.

• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• Patients said they found it easy to make an appointment. Generally there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day.
• The practice 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 practice proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.
• Clinical protocols were embedded in the day to day routine of the GPs and nurses at the practice. The protocols helped to ensure a consistent approach to care and treatment.
• Patients could be seen at any of the three practice sites offering flexibility of appointments.
• Patient registers were used to identify patients who might require flexible access to appointments or longer appointments.
• Leaders at the practice identified that development of staff skills, competence and knowledge was integral to delivery of high quality care.
• The practice worked with a care navigator and with local drug and alcohol services to meet the needs of patients with complex medical and social requirements.
• Services were delivered flexibly to provide clinics at local university colleges and boarding schools. There was close liaison with school and university college nurses.

We saw areas of outstanding practice,

• The practice had recently responded to a request from the local hospital to act as medical officers for a summer school for people learning English. The hospital asked for this cover to reduce the number of foreign language students attending A & E.
• The local drug and alcohol service held a weekly clinic at the practice. This aided close working between this specialist service and the GPs and provided patients with a service close to their home. The GPs were responsible for shared care agreements with this service for patients prescribed heroin substitutes.
• One of the GPs provided specialist Dermatology services which reduced the number of referrals to hospital and lengthy visits to outpatient departments.

The areas where the provider should make improvement are:

• Review provision of access to the main surgery premises for patients with mobility problems if the project to build new premises does not go ahead.
• Ensure the defibrillator is installed and commissioned at the Wolvercote branch surgery.
• Consider means of encouraging eligible patients to attend for breast screening.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 12 September 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people with long-term conditions.

• Nursing staff had lead roles in chronic disease management and patients at risk of hospital admission were identified as a priority.
• The practice achieved 100% of the diabetes clinical indicators which was better than the CCG average of 94% and national average of 89%.
• Longer appointments and home visits were available when needed.
• The practice worked with respiratory nurses who were able to offer home visits to carry out annual reviews for patients with COPD (lung disease).
• All these patients had a named GP and a structured annual review to check their health and medicines needs were being met. For those patients with the most complex needs, the named GP worked with relevant health and care professionals to deliver a multidisciplinary package of care.

Updated 12 September 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of families, children and young people.

• There were systems in place to identify and follow up children living in disadvantaged circumstances and who were at risk, for example, children and young patients who had a high number of A&E attendances. Immunisation rates were relatively high for all standard childhood immunisations.
• Patients told us that children and young patients were treated in an age-appropriate way and were recognised as individuals, and we saw evidence to confirm this.
• The practice’s uptake for the cervical screening programme was 97%, which was above the CCG average of 83% and the national average of 82%.
• Appointments were available outside of school hours and the premises were suitable for children and babies.
• We saw positive examples of joint working with midwives, health visitors and school nurses.

Updated 12 September 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of older people.

• The practice offered proactive, personalised care to meet the needs of the older patients in its population.
• The practice was responsive to the needs of older patients, and offered home visits and urgent appointments for those with enhanced needs.
• 100% of patients aged over 75 years with a fragility fracture were prescribed bone sparing medication compared to the CCG average of 92% and national average of 93%.
• GPs undertook regular visits to 28 patients registered at three local care homes.
• The practice worked with a care navigator, who was based at the practice. There were examples of the care navigator organising aids and adaptations to patient’s homes when these assisted with daily living for this patient group.

Updated 12 September 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of working-age people (including those recently retired and students).

• The needs of the working age population, those recently retired and students had been identified and the practice had adjusted the services it offered to ensure these were accessible, flexible and offered continuity of care.
• The practice was proactive in offering online services as well as a full range of health promotion and screening that reflects the needs for this age group.
• The GPs and nurses worked closely with college nurses at the local university to provide coordinated care for students.
• New university students received assistance to register with the practice and were given a wide range of health promotion advice at the time of registering. Any missed immunisations were brought up to date during the registration process.
• Extended hours clinics were offered on a Monday morning, Wednesday evening and every Saturday between 8.30am and 10.30am for patients who found difficulty in attending appointments during working hours.
• Telephone consultations were available.

Updated 12 September 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia).

• 97% of patients diagnosed with dementia had their care reviewed in a face to face meeting in the last 12 months, which was above the clinical commissioning group (CCG) average of 85% and the national average of 84%.
• 96% of patients diagnosed with a severe and enduring mental health problem had their alcohol consumption recorded in their records compared to the CCG average of 89% and national average of 90%.
• The practice regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of patients experiencing poor mental health, including those with dementia.
• The practice carried out advance care planning for patients with dementia.
• The practice had told patients experiencing poor mental health about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.
• The practice had a system in place to follow up patients who had attended accident and emergency where they may have been experiencing poor mental health.
• Staff had a good understanding of how to support patients with mental health needs and dementia.
• The local drug and alcohol service held a weekly clinic at the practice. This aided close working between this specialist service and the GPs and provided patients with a service close to their home. The GPs were responsible for shared care agreements with this service for patients prescribed heroin substitutes.
• The practice dementia and mental health registers were used to identify patients who required flexible access to appointments or longer appointments.

Updated 12 September 2016

The practice is rated as good for the care of people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable.

• The practice held a register of patients living in vulnerable circumstances including carers and those with a learning disability. The registers were used to inform reception staff that these patients may require flexible access to appointments or longer appointments.
• The practice offered longer appointments for patients with a learning disability.
• The practice regularly worked with other health care professionals in the case management of vulnerable patients.
• The practice informed vulnerable patients about how to access various support groups and voluntary organisations.
• Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. Staff were aware of their responsibilities regarding information sharing, documentation of safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in normal working hours and out of hours.
• Over 70% of patients diagnosed with a learning disability had a care plan agreed and had an annual health check-up.