Western Road Surgery

Updated 28 May 2015

Western Road Surgery is located close to Billericay High Street. The practice provides services for approximately 10,440 patients living in and around Billericay and covering Stock and Ramsden Heath.

The practice is managed by four GP partners and one registrar GP (a GP in training who has completed medical school training). The practice employs three practice nurses, a team of 13 administrative and reception staff and a practice manager who support the GPs .

The practice is open between 8 am and 6.30 pm from Monday to Friday and 8.00 am to 10.30 am on Saturdays. Routine and same day appointments were available from 8 am to 12.30 and 2.00 to 6.30 Monday to Friday with pre-bookable appointments being available on Saturdays.

Routine appointments may be booked on-line via the practice website, in person or by telephone.

The CQC intelligent monitoring placed the practice in band 6. The intelligent monitoring tool draws on existing national data sources and includes indicators covering a range of GP practice activity and patient experience including the Quality Outcomes Framework (QOF) and the National Patient Survey. Based on the indicators, each GP practice has been categorised into one of six priority bands, with band six representing the best performance band. This banding is not a judgement on the quality of care being given by the GP practice; this only comes after a CQC inspection has taken place.

Western Road Surgery had opted in to providing out-of-hours services (evenings and weekends) through membership of a co-operative of practices. Details of how to contact the out-of-hours unscheduled was available within the practice, on the practice website and in a recorded telephone message.

Updated 28 May 2015

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We conducted a comprehensive announced inspection on 20 February 2015.

Specifically, we found the practice to be good for providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led services. It was also good for providing services for the older people, people with long-term conditions, families, children and young people, working age people (including those recently retired and students), people living in vulnerable circumstances, and people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia).

Our key findings were as follows:

• Staff understood and fulfilled their responsibilities to raise concerns, and to report incidents and near misses. Information about safety was recorded, monitored, appropriately reviewed, addressed and shared with staff during meetings.
• Risks to patients were assessed and managed.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance.
• Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and any further training needs had been identified and planned for.
• 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 readily available and easy to understand. Complaints were investigated and responded to appropriately.
• 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.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice

Updated 28 May 2015

This practice is rated as good for the care of people with long term conditions. The practice had effective arrangements for making sure that people with long term conditions were invited to the practice for annual and half yearly reviews of their health. Appointments were available with the practice nurse for annual health checks and reviews for long term conditions such as diabetes and respiratory conditions including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). When needed, longer appointments and home visits were available. For those people with the most complex needs their named GP worked with relevant health and care professionals to deliver a multidisciplinary package of care.

The practice recognised the needs of people with early onset conditions associated with older age including dementia and recently carried out work with the local Mental Health Provider (South Essex Partnership Trust) to help ensure that patients were jointly identified and supported.

People whose health prevented them from being able to attend the surgery, people whose health prevented them from being able to attend the surgery, received the same service as the Practice would refer them to the community nurse to be seen in their own home.

Updated 28 May 2015

The practice is rated as good for the population group of families, children and young people. Appointments could be booked in person, on-line or by telephone. Appointments were flexible, and appointments available on Saturday mornings for routine issues.

Information and advice was available to promote health for women before, during and after pregnancy. The practice monitored the physical and developmental progress of babies and young children. There were arrangements for identifying and monitoring children who were at risk of abuse or neglect.

Records showed that looked after children (such as those in foster care / under the care of the Local Authority), those subject to child protection orders and children living in disadvantaged circumstances were discussed and any issues shared and followed up at monthly multi-disciplinary meetings. GPs and nurses monitored children and young people who had a high number of A&E attendances or those who failed to attend appointments for immunisations and shared information appropriately. Staff were trained to recognise and deal with acutely ill babies and children and to take appropriate action.

There was information available to inform mothers about all childhood immunisations, what they are, and at what age the child should have them as well as other checks for new-born babies. Staff proactively followed up patients who failed to attend appointments for scheduled immunisation and vaccination programmes. The practice performed better than the local average for uptake in childhood immunisations and vaccinations.

Information and advice on sexual health and contraception was provided during GP and nurse appointments. The practice provided clinics for long acting reversible contraceptives such as contraceptive implants and intrauterine devices (IUD coils).

Updated 28 May 2015

This practice is rated as good for the care of older people. Patients over the age of 75 had a named GP to coordinate and plan care and treatment. The practice was proactive in providing health checks as part of commissioned services and upon request. The GPs carried out visits to patient’s homes if they were unable to travel to the practice for appointments and demonstrated a strong commitment to supporting older people to remain living at home through the coordinated services with local commissioners and health services.

The practice specifically worked with the local Clinical Commissioning Group to commission care co-ordination teams, comprising senior care co-ordinator and support staff to strengthen collaborative working arrangements between the GP practice teams and providers of community health and social care to enhance the care offered to people aged 75 years and older.

The practice had recently worked with NHS England and other local colleagues to organise suitable arrangements to accommodate patients at a local care home, ensuring that the transition from their existing GP went smoothly.

The practice identified people with caring responsibilities and those who required additional support which was recorded on their patient record. Patients with caring responsibilities were invited to register as carers so that they could be offered support and advice about the range of agencies and benefits available to them.

Updated 28 May 2015

The practice is rated as good for the population group of working-age people (including those recently retired and students). The needs of the working age population, those recently retired and students had been identified and the practice had adjusted the services it offered to ensure these were accessible, flexible and offered continuity of care. Appointments could be booked online, in person or by telephone. Appointments could be booked in advance and on the day. The practice also offers telephone consultations and was in the process of developing an online consultation service (e-consult).

Information about annual health checks for patients aged between 40 and 74 years was available within the practice and on their website. Nurse led clinics were provided for well patient health checks. The practice provided travel advice and vaccination through appointments with the practice nurse team. Information on the various vaccinations available including diphtheria, tetanus, polio, and hepatitis A was available on the practice website. When patients required referral to specialist services they were offered a choice of services, locations, and dates through the ‘Choose and Book’ system.

Updated 28 May 2015

The practice is rated as good for the population group of people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia). People experiencing poor mental health had received an annual physical health check. The practice regularly worked with multi-disciplinary teams in the case management of people experiencing poor mental health including those with dementia. The practice provided dementia screening services and referrals were made to specialist services as required.

The practice had sign-posted patients experiencing poor mental health to various support groups and third sector organisations including MIND. Patients were referred to local counselling sessions where appropriate and patients were provided with information how to self-refer should they wish to receive counselling.

The practice worked with local care coordinators and commissioners to prevent avoidable hospital admissions in 2% of their population who were identified as at risk due frailty including those with mental health needs.

Updated 28 May 2015

This practice is rated as good for the care of people living in vulnerable circumstances. The practice had a register of patients who had learning disabilities. All patients with learning disabilities were invited to attend for an annual health check. The practice regularly worked with multidisciplinary teams in the case management of vulnerable people. The practice had sign-posted vulnerable patients to various support groups and third sector organisations. Staff knew how to recognise signs of abuse in vulnerable adults and children. Staff were aware of their responsibilities regarding information sharing, documentation of safeguarding concerns and how to contact relevant agencies in and out of hours.