Archived: Oakridge Park Medical Centre

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Oakridge Park Medical Centre on 17 January 2017. Overall the practice is rated as good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

• There was an open and transparent approach to safety and an effective system in place for reporting and recording significant events.
• Risks to patients were assessed and well managed.
• Staff assessed patients’ needs and delivered care in line with current evidence based guidance. Staff had been trained to provide them with the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Patients said they were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and they were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.
• Information about services and how to complain was available and easy to understand. Improvements were made to the quality of care as a result of complaints and concerns.
• The majority of patients said they found it easy to make an appointment, with urgent appointments available the same day.
• The practice had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients and meet their needs.
• 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.
• The provider was aware of and complied with the requirements of the duty of candour.

We saw two areas of outstanding practice:

• The practice was classed as a POCT (point of care testing) hub practice within the locality, and alongside six other practices was offering patients additional services not normally found within a GP setting. For example, the practice was able to offer D-dimer testing for patients. (D-dimer tests are used to rule out the presence of a blood clot).
• The practice invested considerably in the provision of an Echocardiography service, for both patients registered at the practice and those registered at other practices within the locality. (An echocardiogram (echo) is a test that uses high frequency sound waves (ultrasound) to make pictures of your heart).The service was established 25 years prior to our inspection, by the lead GP. Appointments were available throughout the week and during a dedicated Saturday Clinic. We saw that between June 2016 and October 2016 the practice saw 264 patients under the cardiology service.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Monitor systems to record actions taken in response to safety alerts, to ensure they are effectively implemented.
• Continue to monitor and improve provisions for patients with mental health concerns.
• Develop systems to identify and support more carers in their patient population.
• Continue to monitor and ensure improvement to patient access to GP appointments.
• Encourage all staff to complete mandatory training in a timely manner and in accordance with the practice schedule for completion.
• Continue with efforts to stabilise the clinical team through active recruitment.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice