Archived: Blue Dykes Surgery - Grassmoor

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Blue Dykes Surgery – Grassmoor on 8 June 2016. Overall the practice is rated as good.

• We inspected the practice at a time when arrangements were in place to work in partnership with the Royal Primary Care from July 2016 to improve the sustainability of the practice and access to GP appointments.

• The practice had an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting, recording and analysing significant events. Learning was shared widely across all staffing groups.

• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed. This included recruitment checks and procedures for managing medical emergencies.

• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. The care needs of patients with complex health conditions and / or living in vulnerable circumstances was planned and co-ordinated in collaboration with other health and social care professionals to ensure their safety.

• Patients had access to two GP partners and clinical staff with a wide range of skills, experience and expertise. This included the practice employed community psychiatric nurse, pharmacists, advanced nurse practitioners and practice nurses.

• The practice had an effective programme in place for undertaking clinical audits and we saw evidence of audits driving improvements to patient outcomes.

• Patients were positive about their interactions with staff. They said they were treated with compassion and dignity; and were involved in decisions about their care and treatment.

• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.

• Patients told us that access to GP appointments could sometimes be difficult and this was reflected in the results from the national GP patient survey.

• Plans were in place to strengthen the overarching governance arrangements and increase the capacity of clinical leadership. This was to ensure better oversight of the practice’s performance, delivery of services and professional development for clinical staff.

• The system in place for monitoring staff training needed to be strengthened to ensure staff were up to date with their mandatory and refresher training in line with the provider’s procedures.

• Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns. All staff were involved in reviewing complaints to identify learning and key themes were also shared with the patient participation group (PPG).

• 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.

However there were areas where improvements should be made:

• Ensure an effective system is in place for monitoring staff training to assure the provider that all staff have completed mandatory and refresher training relevant to their roles.

• Ensure patient experience data (including access to appointments) continues to be reviewed, monitored and acted upon to continually drive service improvement.

Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP

Chief Inspector of General Practice