Knightwick Surgery Also known as Drs Bywater, Salter & Hinton

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

We looked for evidence that the practice met people’s needs, and that staff treated people equally and without discrimination. At our last assessment, we rated this key question as good. At this assessment, the rating remains the same.

This service scored 79 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The practice made sure patients were at the centre of their care and treatment choices. They were given advice to understand their care and treatment options. Patients told us they felt involved and supported in decisions about their care. We saw examples of how staff and leaders put patients at the centre of their care and treatment.

The practice understood the diverse heath and care needs of their patients, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity. The practice had tailored its services and worked in partnership with other services to meet the diverse needs of its community. For example, they had engaged with Carers association to promote the support for carers in their practice.

The practice supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs. The practice website included accessible online tools such as dyslexia friendly and translation. The practice had access to interpreters and highlighted on patient records if patients had any communication or accessibility needs.

The practice made it easy for patients to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. They had a complaints policy in place, and information on how to complain was readily available at the practice. Complaints were appropriately handled and dealt with, and learning was discussed and shared with all staff during team meetings.

The practice was exceptional at ensuring patients could access the care, support and treatment when they needed it. Patients could access the service to suit their needs for example online, in person and by telephone. Same day appointments were available, and patients could also book routine appointments in advance. The practice had made changes to improve access including moving to a care navigation approach to booking appointments. Patients were asked to give some brief details about their concern to allow their request to be triaged. They eased the early morning rush on the telephones by allocating more staff to answering calls. This helped to ease the pressure on the reception staff and allowed more patients to get through on the telephone to book an appointment. Leaders regularly monitored and reviewed telephones calls to make improvements. Results from the National GP survey showed that 99% of patients responded positively to the overall experience of contacting their GP practice and 96% of patients responded positively to how easy it was to contact their GP practice on the phone. Both were above the local and national averages. Feedback we received from patients was very positive about accessing appointments in a timely manner.

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about patients who were most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this. Staff and leaders were alert to discrimination and inequality that could disadvantage different groups of patients using their service. Physical premises were accessible, and the practice had reviewed barriers to care to improve people’s experience. The practice had processes to ensure patients could register at the practice including those with no fixed abode such as homeless people.

Patients were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future. This included patient wishes about cardiopulmonary resuscitation and end-of-life care. This information was shared with other services when necessary.