Background to this inspection
Updated
10 October 2018
The Connaught Square Practice operates from 41 Connaught Square, London, W2 2HL and has access to four clinical consulting rooms, two located on the ground floor and two located in the basement.
The practice provides NHS primary care services to approximately 7,350 patients and operates under a Personal Medical Services (PMS) contract (an alternative to the standard GMS contract used when services are agreed locally with a practice which may include additional services beyond the standard contract). The practice is part of NHS Central London (Westminster) Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).
The practice is registered as a partnership with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide the regulated activities of diagnostic and screening procedures, treatment of disease, disorder or injury, maternity and midwifery services and family planning.
The practice staff comprises of a male and female GP partner, two female and one male salaried GP providing a total of 27 clinical sessions per week. The clinical team is supported by two practice nurses (1.5 WTE), two full-time healthcare assistants and a clinical pharmacist. The administration team is led by a full-time practice manager and a reception and administration team of eight staff.
The practice is open between 8am and 6.30pm Monday to Friday. Extended hours are available on Monday to Friday between 6.30pm and 8pm. In addition, the practice serves as one of four practices in Westminster offering seven-day GP access through a NHS Central London CCG-led service. Patients of both the practice and neighbouring Westminster practices can access this service on Saturday and Sunday from 8am to 4pm. When the surgery is closed, out-of-hours services are accessed through the local out of hours service or NHS 111.
The practice population is in the fourth most deprived decile in England, on a scale of one to 10 with one being the most deprived and 10 being the least deprived. People living in more deprived areas tend to have greater need for health services. The practice has a higher than average population of male and female patients between the ages of 15 and 44 years. Forty-three per cent of the people in the practice area were from black and minority ethnic (BME) groups. The practice told us that it had identified that 20% of its patient population speak Arabic as their first language.
Updated
10 October 2018
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at The Connaught Square Practice on 15 June 2017. The overall rating for the practice was Requires Improvement. The full comprehensive report on the 15 June 2017 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for The Connaught Square Practice on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
This inspection, on 23 August 2018, was an announced comprehensive inspection to confirm that the practice had carried out their plan to meet the requirements that we identified in our previous inspection on 15 June 2017. This report covers our findings in relation to those requirements and any improvements made since our last inspection. The practice is now rated as Good overall.
The key questions at this inspection are rated as:
Are services safe? – Good
Are services effective? – Good
Are services caring? – Good
Are services responsive? – Good
Are services well-led? - Good
At this inspection we found:
- The practice had addressed the findings of our previous inspection in respect of the management of patient safety alerts, safeguarding, infection prevention and control, medicine management and clinical protocols.
- There were systems in place to safeguard children and vulnerable adults from abuse and staff we spoke with knew how to identify and report safeguarding concerns.
- There was an open and transparent approach to safety and a system in place for reporting and recording significant events. The practice had clear systems to manage risk so that safety incidents were less likely to happen. When incidents did happen, the practice learned from them and improved their processes.
- The practice had systems in place to ensure care and treatment was delivered according to evidence-based guidelines.
- Some patient outcomes were variable. However, we saw that the practice had plans in place to further address these shortfalls. Patient comment cards received were all positive about the service.
- Information about services and how to complain was available. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
- Staff involved and treated patients with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
- Patients were able to make an appointment with a named GP and there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day.
- The facilities and premises were appropriate for the services delivered. The practice had made reasonable adjustments when patients found it hard to access services.
- There was a clear leadership structure and staff felt supported by management.
- The provider was aware of the requirements of the duty of candour. Examples we reviewed showed the practice complied with these requirements.
The areas where the provider should make improvements are:
- Consider auditing the system to manage test results to assure yourself that it is functioning effectively.
- Address the outstanding actions of the Infection Prevention and Control audit.
- Continue to monitor patient outcomes in relation to the cervical screening programme and the child immunisation programme.
- Continue to monitor results in relation to the GP national survey.
Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGPChief Inspector of General Practice
Please refer to the detailed report and the evidence tables for further information.