Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at East Finchley Medical Centre on the 7 July 2015. Overall the practice is rated as good.
Specifically, we found the practice to be good for providing effective, caring, responsive and well-led services. The practice required improvement for providing safe services. It was also good for providing services for older people, people with long term-conditions, families, children and young people, working age people (including those recently retired and students), people whose circumstances may make them vulnerable and people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia).
Our key findings across all the areas we inspected 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 and addressed.
- Risks to patients were assessed and well managed with the exception of infection control.
- Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered following best practice guidance.
- 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.
- Patients said there was continuity of care, with urgent appointments available the same day.
- 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.
However there were areas of practice where the provider needs to make improvements.
Importantly the provider must:
- Ensure infection control leads receive adequate infection control training and ensure infection control audits are completed annually.
In addition the provider should:
- To review the disposal of urine specimens to ensure the risk of contamination is reduced.
- Ensure clinical staff increase their awareness of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
- Ensure access to a language services to support those patients where English is not their first language is provided.
- Ensure equality and diversity training is provided to the staff team.
- Ensure the views of patients through its PPG (A PPG is a group of patients registered with a practice who work with the practice to improve services and the quality of care) about their experiences, quality of care and treatment delivered by the service are sought.
Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP)
Chief Inspector of General Practice