Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice
Ide Lane Surgery was inspected on Tuesday 2 December 2014. This was a comprehensive inspection. Overrall we rated this practice as good
The practice provides primary medical services to people living in the area of Alphington, near Exeter and the surrounding areas. The practice provides services to a homogeneous population and is situated in a residential semi-rural location.
At the time of our inspection there were approximately 7,500 patients registered at the service with a team of four GP partners and three salaried GPs. There were four male and three female GPs. GP partners held managerial and financial responsibility for running the business. In addition there was a practice manager, a nursing team and administrative and reception staff.
Patients who use the practice have access to community staff including district nurses, community psychiatric nurses, health visitors, physiotherapists, mental health staff, counsellors, chiropodist and midwives.
Our key findings were as follows:
Patients reported having excellent access to appointments at the practice and liked having a named GP which improved their continuity of care. The practice was clean, well-organised, had good facilities and was well equipped to treat patients. There were effective infection control procedures in place.
The practice valued feedback from patients and acted upon this. Feedback from patients about their care and treatment was consistently positive. We observed a patient centred culture. Staff were motivated and inspired to offer kind and compassionate care and worked to overcome obstacles to achieving this. Views of external stakeholders were positive and were aligned with our findings.
The practice was well-led and had a clear leadership structure in place whilst retaining a sense of mutual respect and team work. There were systems in place to monitor and improve quality and identify risk and systems to manage emergencies.
Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered in line with current legislation. This included assessment of a patient’s mental capacity to make an informed decision about their care and treatment, and the promotion of good health.
Suitable staff recruitment, pre-employment checks, induction and appraisal processes were in place and had been carried out. Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and further training needs had been identified and planned.
Information received about the practice prior to and during the inspection demonstrated the practice performed comparatively with all other practices within the clinical commissioning group (CCG) area.
Patients told us they felt safe in the hands of the staff and felt confident in clinical decisions made. There were effective safeguarding procedures in place.
Significant events, complaints and incidents were investigated and discussed. Learning from these events was communicated and acted upon.
The practice recognised the importance of patient feedback and had encouraged the development of a patient participation group (PPG) to gain patients’ views.
There were several areas of outstanding practice we identified. These included:
- The practice had responded to a complaint about leg ulcer treatment by setting up a specialist leg ulcer clinic with trained nursing staff. Not only does this clinic provide effective treatment of leg ulcers but it carries out preventative work with patients to help avert the causes of leg ulcers. The practice was targeting patients with a potential to develop leg ulcers.
- A GP at the practice had developed a computer software package which identifies whether patients currently taking anti-psychotic medicines have stopped taking them. This allowed GPs to arrange timely and successful interventions.
Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP)
Chief Inspector of General Practice