OHP - College Green Medical Practice

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• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We carried out an announced assessment of 5 quality statements (Kindness, compassion and dignity; Treating people as individuals; Independence, choice and control; Responding to people’s immediate needs and Workforce wellbeing and enablement). We found: People were always treated with kindness, empathy and compassion. They understood that they mattered and that their experience of how they were treated and supported mattered. Their privacy and dignity was respected. Every effort was made to take their wishes into account and respect their choices, to achieve the best possible outcomes for them. This includes supporting people to live as independently as possible. Feedback from partners was consistently positive about staff and the care provided. Published patient satisfaction data was consistently positive and showed that patient satisfaction was higher when compared with local and national averages. In-house patient survey information was also very positive. Staff shared many examples where they had gone above and beyond to deliver high-quality person-centered care.

This service scored 90 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Data from the 2024 National GP patient survey showed that patient satisfaction remained high when compared with results from the previous year and that patient satisfaction remained higher than local and national averages. For example, of those people completing the survey: 96% find the reception and administrative team at this GP practice helpful. 91% describe their experience of contacting their GP practice as good. 91% describe their overall experience of this GP practice as good. This had improved from 80% in 2023. 95% say the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at listening to them during their last general practice appointment. 96% say the healthcare professional they saw or spoke to was good at treating them with care and concern during their last general practice appointment. From other patient feedback we reviewed for example, feedback directly to CQC, NHS website and Healthwatch website, we saw staff were described as being compassionate, respectful, understanding and patients felt listened to. Patients were made to feel at ease and not rushed. People feel that staff listen to them and communicate with them appropriately, in a way they can understand.

Staff were passionate about providing high quality patient-centred services and shared examples of where they had gone the extra mile to support patients’ overall health and wellbeing. Staff collected feedback from patients to help monitor patient satisfaction. Leaders used patient feedback to help drive further improvements. Staff told us they had seen an increase in the number of patients providing positive feedback about them and the service overall. Chaperones were available if needed and privacy screens were used to help maintain dignity. Leaders monitored trends in complaints and compared themes to previous years. The number of complaints relating to staff behaviour/attitude and communication had fallen when compared to the previous year.

We observed all staff treating patients with kindness and compassion. Staff were polite and helpful in reception. Staff dealing with patients on the telephone were clear, compassionate and respectful. We observed all clinicians walking to the waiting room to “collect” their patients. We observed a culture of kindness and respect between colleagues and different teams. We observed staff to have high levels of commitment and determination to put patient’s needs at the heart of everything they did.

Patients were treated with respect and dignity and supported to manage their health in a way that made sense to them. Patients were involved in and in control of planning their care and support. Data from the National GP patient survey showed that 96% of people that responded to the survey felt they were involved as much as they wanted to be in decisions about their care and treatment during their last general practice appointment.

Staff treated people as individuals and shared examples with us where they had considered any relevant protected equality characteristics. Staff used different communication aids and interpreters to enable patients to engage in their care, treatment and support to maximise their experience and outcomes.

Our record reviews indicated that patients’ individual needs and preferences were understood and these were reflected in their care, treatment and support. People’s personal, cultural, social and religious needs were understood and met. There were processes in place that allowed staff to identify and record patients’ preferences on their patient record. Leaders provided in-house training for staff that would help support them meet their patients’ needs. For example, staff had received training on how to support autistic people. This was additional to training staff had already completed on-line.

People were supported to access the service and premises. Patients were treated with respect and dignity. From patient feedback we reviewed we saw patients commented they were supported with care that met their needs and they felt listened to. Data from the 2024 National GP patient survey showed that of those people that completed the survey: 76% said they were offered a choice of time or day when they last tried to make a general practice appointment. This was higher when compared with local and national practices. 90% said they have had enough support from local services or organisations in the last 12 months to help manage their long-term conditions or illnesses. 71% found it easy to contact this GP practice using their website. The practice had carried out an in-house patient survey in January 2024. 601 people had responded to the survey, of those patients that responded, 77% felt it was easy to use the practice’s website to look for information or access services.

Staff told us patients were given a choice over the type of appointment, for example, they could have a face to face or telephone appointment. Home visits were also available. If the appointment was not urgent and met specific criteria, staff sent patients a booking link, so that patients could book an appointment that suited their needs.

Where possible staff offered patients a choice to which service they attended for urgent referrals. Extended hours appointment were available till 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am-5pm on a Saturday. Patients could contact the surgery in a range of ways including through telephone, the online consultation system, NHS app or in person. Patients could request to see their named or usual GP and staff accommodated this wherever possible and always for certain groups including palliative care patients.

Patients did not feel rushed during appointments. They felt listened to and understood. Patients attending the practice for minor surgery felt they had been dealt with in a timely manner. The practice had received 297 reviews overall on the Healthwatch website, with a 4.5 star rating. We saw there were 44 reviews in June 2024. Of these reviews, 42 were positive about the service received. With the service being described as brilliant and excellent. The practice had received 20 reviews on the NHS website between January and June 2024. Of these reviews, 17 were positive about the service received including how their needs were met.

People’s needs, views, wishes and comfort were a priority. Staff had access to appropriate information and quickly anticipated additional needs to avoid any preventable discomfort, concern or distress. Staff were alert to people’s needs and took time to observe, communicate and engage people in discussions about their immediate needs. They found out how to respond in the most appropriate way to respect their wishes. All staff were trained to recognise when people needed urgent help or support and use appropriate tools and technology to assist them. Triage systems were in place to identify urgent care needs. Reception staff were trained in recognising sepsis and signposting patients accordingly.

All staff we spoke with felt well supported to carry out their roles and responsibilities to the best of their ability. To ensure they delivered high standards of care. Staff had access to support and guidance as needed. Staff reported strong team working. Staff felt able to raise concerns or share ideas for improvement and felt they would be listened to. There were opportunities to discuss complex cases, so that staff were not working in isolation and seek advice from specialists. To keep morale high, leaders shared positive patient feedback with staff and acknowledged exceptional performance and commitment through recognition awards. Staff felt respected and valued by their colleagues.

There were processes in place to support ongoing professional development. Staff received yearly appraisals and had protected learning time to complete training. There was a range of staff facilities including a staff room, changing facilities, facilities to store bikes securely on site and electric car charging points. Staff had access to an occupational health service, counselling services and stress management workshops. The practice had a lead GP and a wellbeing champion that led on enhancing staff wellbeing by promoting wellbeing initiatives and supporting staff. Information was readily available to staff (a wellbeing page on their internal information sharing system) to make them aware of what additional support that was available to them. There were processes to recognise when staff were performing well or when they had exceeded expectations. Leaders had carried out a staff survey in May 2023 and developed an action plan to improve areas that had been identified through staff feedback. Staff also took part in the yearly staff survey that was carried out by the provider. There were processes in place to monitor if actions had led to improvements in staff satisfaction and wellbeing.