Archived: GPDQ PRACTICE OFFICE

Updated 27 March 2018

GPDQ Limited provides mobile, private GP services in the Greater London area and in Birmingham, through its location, GPDQ Service Office, also known as GPDQ. The organisation is based at Suite 18 St Marks Studios, 14 Chillingworth Street, London, N7 8QJ. The premises are used for management and administrative purposes only. The provider does not consult with patients in it its own premises.

GPDQ Limited provides private GP services which are available to any fee paying patient of any age. The service is managed by a Management Board which includes a non-clinical Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, a Chief Medical Officer and two Clinical Directors all of whom are qualified GPs. The Chief Medical Officer is also a partner in an NHS GP service. The Management Board is advised on clinical matters by a Clinical Board, two members of which are external advisors.

The Chief Medical Officer is the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Consultations are undertaken by 37 part-time GPs, all of whom also work in NHS GP services. There are eight operational managers, including manager of clinical operations, analytics, marketing, corporate well-being and development. The team is completed by five administrative employees.

Patients using services provided by GPDQ Limited contact the provider by telephone, through its website or using a bespoke application developed for mobile devices. Patients are seen by the GP in their own homes, places of work, hotels or other external locations. The service is currently available in the Greater London area and in Birmingham city.

The service can be accessed using the website and mobile application twenty four hours per day and by telephone between 8am and 6pm. Appointments are available between 8am and 11pm, 365 days per annum.

As part of our inspection we asked for CQC comment cards to be completed by patients prior to our inspection; however patients of the service do not visit the premises which meant they were unable to access the comment cards. We were also unable to interview patients for the same reason. The provider had undertaken recent satisfaction survey activity and had collected feedback from complaints, compliments and social media. The majority of feedback received was positive with people referring to the service as easy and convenient to use and doctor’s being caring and highly responsive. There were no consistent themes amongst less positive comments.

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the service was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

The service had not previously been inspected.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following five questions:

• Is it safe?
• Is it effective?
• Is it caring?
• Is it responsive to people’s needs?
• Is it well-led?

These questions therefore formed the framework for the areas we looked at during the inspection.

Updated 27 March 2018

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 19 December 2017 to ask the service the following key questions; Are services safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led?

Our findings were:

Are services safe?

We found that this service was providing safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

We found that this service was providing effective care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

We found that this service was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services responsive?

We found that this service was providing responsive care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services well-led?

We found that this service was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the service was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

GPDQ Limited provides mobile, private GP services in the Greater London area and in Birmingham, through its location, GPDQ Service Office, also known as GPDQ. The organisation is based at Suite 18 St Marks Studios, 14 Chillingworth Street, London, N7 8QJ. The premises are used for management and administrative purposes only. The provider does not consult with patients in it its own premises.

The service is managed by a Management Board which includes a non-clinical Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, a Chief Medical Officer and two Clinical Directors all of whom are qualified GPs. The Chief Medical Officer is also a partner in an NHS GP service. The Management Board is advised on clinical matters by a Clinical Board, two members of which are external advisors.

The Chief Medical Officer is the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Our key findings were:

• Staff were aware of current evidence based guidance and carried out clinical quality improvement activity to improve patient outcomes.
• There was an effective system for reporting and recording significant events; lessons were shared to make sure action was taken to improve safety in the service.
• Staff had been trained with the skills and knowledge to deliver effective care and treatment.
• There were procedures for assessing, monitoring and managing risks to patient and staff safety.
• There were effective protocols for verifying the identity of patients requesting GP consultations, including a step to ensure adults accompanying or requesting consultations for, paediatric patients had legal authority for the patient.
• The service had processes to ensure clinicians who worked more often in NHS services, were knowledgeable about and had the resources to deliver safe and effective treatment as mobile doctors, for instance, by understanding how referrals could be made in different geographical areas.
• Patients could access appointments and services in a way and at a time that suited them. Appointments could be booked over the telephone between 8am and 11pm every day, or at any time using the provider’s website and mobile application.
• Information about services and how to complain was available. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management. The service proactively sought feedback from staff and patients, which it acted on.
• The provider was aware of the requirements of the duty of candour. Examples we reviewed showed the service complied with these requirements.