Archived: Riverside Medical Practice

Updated 10 October 2019

Riverside Medical Practice is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as a partnership GP provider located in Shrewsbury, Shropshire and opened in October 1987. The practice provides primary medical services to approximately 10,503 registered patients residing in Shrewsbury town and some surrounding villages. The practice is part of the NHS Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group and holds a General Medical Services (GMS) contract with NHS England. A GMS contract is a contract between NHS England and general practices for delivering general medical services and is the commonest form of GP contract.

The practice operates from Riverside Medical Practice, Roushill, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY1 1PQ and provides regulated activities from this location only. The practice area is one of average deprivation when compared with local and national averages. Demographically the average life expectancy and age profile of patients is mainly comparable with local and national averages however, 25% of the practice population are over 65 years old, which is the same as the local average but higher than the national average of 17%. The percentage of patients with a long-term condition is 59% which is higher than the local CCG average of 55% and the national average of 51% which could mean an increased demand for GP services. The ethnicity of patient registered is mainly White British (97%).

The practice staffing comprises:

• Six GP partners.
• Three salaried GPs.
• One mental health nurse practitioner.
• One practice nurse and three specialist nurse practitioners including a lead nurse.
• One clinical pharmacist.
• A business manager, an operations manager and a team of reception and administrative staff including an apprentice. The practice currently has a vacancy for patient services manager. A health care assistant and a community care co-ordinator have recently been appointed and are due to commence employment shortly.

The practice is open Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 6pm. Extended access GP and nurse appointments are available on a Tuesday and Friday morning from 7.30am. The practice has opted out of providing cover to patients outside of normal working hours. The out-of-hours services are provided by Shropdoc via the NHS 111 service. Routine appointments can be booked in person, by telephone or on-line. Home visits are triaged by an assessing doctor and available to patients with complex needs or who are unable to attend the practice. Patients can also access an extended hour’s service provided by Darwin Health Limited during evenings and weekends. The practice does not provide car parking facilities. The nearest car parks to the practice are at Frankwell or Raven Meadows.

The practice is an accredited training practice for medical students and trainee doctors to gain experience and higher qualification in general practice and family medicine.

Further details about the practice can be found by accessing the practice’s website at www.riverside-medical.co.uk

Updated 10 October 2019

We carried out an announced focused inspection at Riverside Medical Practice on 4 September 2019 due to the length of time since the last inspection. Following our review of the information available to us, including information provided by the practice, we focused our inspection on the following key questions: Effective and Well-Led. Because of the assurance received from our review of information we carried forward the ratings for the following key questions: Safe, Caring and Responsive.

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

• What we found when we inspected
• Information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
• Information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

We previously carried out a comprehensive inspection at Riverside Medical Practice on 19 November 2014. The overall rating was good and all five key areas were rated good. The report on the November 2014 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Riverside Medical Practice on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

We have rated this practice as good overall and good for all population groups.

• The practice understood the needs of its population and tailored services in response to those needs.
• The practice routinely reviewed the effectiveness and appropriateness of the care it provided. It ensured that care and treatment was planned and delivered according to evidence-based guidelines.
• Staff had the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care, support and treatment and worked together and with other organisations to deliver effective care and treatment.
• Audits demonstrated quality improvement.
• Patients were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and were involved in their care and any decisions about their treatment.
• Staff felt valued, proud to work at the practice and well supported by the management team.
• Staff were supported in their roles and with their professional development.
• The practice had an established patient participation group to proactively seek feedback from patients.
• There was compassionate, inclusive and effective leadership. Leaders were visible and approachable and understood the strengths and challenges of the services provided.
• The practice acknowledged that the facilities currently provided no longer met the needs of the practice population. Plans for the practice to move from its current site to a purpose-built practice offering modern facilities and double the consulting rooms a short distance away had recently been approved and building work had commenced and was scheduled to be completed by June 2020.

We saw the following outstanding practice:

• The practice had employed a full-time prescribing mental health nurse practitioner to help improve the mental health provision available for patients aged 14 and over. They provided prompt access for patients with mental health needs and carried out structured annual mental health reviews including dementia and learning disability health checks. They also provided support for patients with insomnia and addiction and provided home visiting options to agoraphobic patients and other vulnerable patients.

The areas where the provider should make improvements are:

• Ensure information about the practice and how to make a complaint is readily accessible.
• Ensure all staff complete outstanding essential training.

Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGPChief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 10 October 2019

Updated 10 October 2019

Updated 10 October 2019

Updated 10 October 2019

Updated 10 October 2019

Updated 10 October 2019