- GP practice
Cardinal Medical Practice
Report from 17 October 2024 assessment
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
Date of assessment: 11 November to 2 December 2024. We conducted this assessment due to the legal entity change of this provider and to follow up on concerns identified at the previous inspection. We assessed all quality statements across safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led key questions. The service had made improvements and were no longer in breach of regulations. There was now a focus on safety with clear and effective governance systems, which staff regularly reviewed. People received effective care and treatment that met their needs. Our clinical searches were mostly positive and showed good care and appropriate monitoring of people with long term conditions and those on high-risk medicines. Arrangements were in place to respond to the individual needs of people and staff treated people with dignity and respect and involved them in decisions about their care. Arrangements were in place to receive and act on people’s feedback. Improvements had been made to access, particularly in accessing the practice by telephone and feedback continued to be obtained, reviewed, monitored and changes made to further improve people’s experiences in relation to access. However, feedback from people was mixed particularly in relation to difficulty accessing the practice by telephone and accessing an appointment. Effective arrangements were in place for partnership working and for improvement and innovation. The way the practice was led and managed promoted the delivery of high-quality, person-centre care. Cardinal Medical Practice is a GP practice in Ipswich, with 2 nearby branch sites. There were approximately 28,742 people registered with the service at the time of our assessment. The ethnicity of the practice population is 87.3% white, 4.2% mixed, 3.7% Asian, 2.9% black, and 1% other. Deprivation in the practice population is in the fifth lowest decile (5 of 10). The lower the decile, the more deprived the practice population is relative to others.
People's experience of this service
The provider shared details of our Give Feedback on Care (GFC) process on their website. We also reviewed people’s feedback from Healthwatch Suffolk and the NHS website. Feedback was mainly positive in relation to the attitude of clinical and non-clinical staff and clinical care and treatment. Feedback was mixed regarding access to appointments and the management of care and treatment. We spoke with representatives from 3 care homes. Overall feedback was positive, particularly in relation to access, care and treatment received, staff knowledge and their kind and caring approach. 1 representative told us end of life care was good but could be more proactive. We reviewed the National GP patient survey, published in July 2024. The 2 indicators for access were below the England average. Of the 5 indicators for people’s experience, 3 were in line with the England average and 2 were below the England average. The practice collected feedback from the friends and family test. In the previous 12 months, 70% of people responded good or very good to their experience of the service. There was an active Patient Participation Group (PPG) of around 13 people, who met face to face with a GP Partner and the General Manager every 2 months. They represented the views of people who used the practice and described themselves as ‘critical friends’. A PPG representative described how practice leaders listened to and acted on most of the feedback shared. They shared positive responses they had received about how the Access and Digital Care Co-ordinator proactively obtained feedback from people about their experiences and offered practical support to all people, including those who were digitally excluded. Feedback from other PPG members was positive regarding access improvements the practice had made.