We carried out a review of the data available to us about Dr Veena Sharma on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Dr Veena Sharma, you can give feedback on this service.
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Veena Sharma, more commonly known as 240 Wexham Road Surgery in Slough, Berkshire on 19 February 2019 as part of our inspection programme.
We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:
We have rated this practice as good overall and good for all population groups.
We found that:
Whilst we found no breaches of regulations, the provider should:
Details of our findings and the evidence supporting our ratings are set out in the evidence tables.
Professor Steve Field CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP
Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Veena Sharma on 30 August 2016. Dr Veena Sharma was rated requires improvement for providing safe, caring and well-led services and good for the provision of effective and responsive services. The overall rating for the practice was requires improvement. The full comprehensive report on the August 2016 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Dr Veena Sharma on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
This inspection was an announced focused inspection carried out on 19 April 2017 to confirm that the practice had carried out their plan to meet the legal requirements in relation to the breaches in regulations that we identified in our previous inspection on 30 August 2016. This report covers our findings in relation to those requirements and also additional improvements made since our last inspection.
We have amended the rating for this practice to reflect these changes. The practice is now rated good for the provision of safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led services. Overall the practice is now rated as good.
Our key findings were as follows:
The practice had effective governance systems and processes in place to identify and mitigate risks. For example, clinical meetings were held monthly to discuss safety alerts, significant events and complaints.
Practice policies, including the business continuity plan, had been reviewed and updated with appropriate information.
Emergency equipment and medicines had been relocated to a central, secure area in the practice and all staff were aware of its location.
Recruitment files contained all necessary employment checks for new staff.
Nursing staff had received appropriate child safeguarding training and were trained to level two.
Prescription stationery was tracked to individual practitioners in line with current guidance.
The practice had improved their processes for identifying carers and were working with the local Healthwatch to engage with and support carers.
The patient participation group had conducted a patient survey which showed high satisfaction with nurse care and treatment.
Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP)
Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Veena Sharma on 30 August 2016. This comprehensive inspection was carried out to check that the practice was meeting the regulations and to consider whether sufficient improvements had been made since the previous inspection in November 2015.
Our previous inspection in November 2015 found breaches of regulations relating to the safe, effective, caring and responsive delivery of services. There were also concerns and regulatory breaches relating to the management and leadership of the practice, specifically in the well led domain. The overall rating of the practice in November 2015 was inadequate and the practice was placed into special measures for six months.
During the inspection in August 2016, we found evidence that improvements had been made. However, the practice is rated as requires improvement overall as there had been insufficient time since new systems and processes were implemented to evidence that improvements have been embedded and can be maintained. Specifically it is rated requires improvement for the provision of safe, caring and well led services and good for provision of effective and responsive services. Our improved rating of requires improvement for the provision of well led services reflects the positive development of leadership and management systems to deliver significant progress in improving services across the board for all patient groups. However, improvements are still required.
Overall the practice is rated as requires improvement.
Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:
Risks to patients were not fully assessed and well managed. For example, emergency medicines could be inaccessible if needed in an emergency.
The business continuity plan and other policies were not comprehensive or reflected current guidelines.
The areas where the provider must make improvements are:
Ensure governance systems are fully embedded and maintained within the practice.
Ensure policies are reviewed to reflect up to date information; risks in relation to the safety of patients are fully assessed and managed; implementing and improving the business continuity plan to ensure the practice is able to maintain services in an emergency or during an event which impacts on the level of service.
Ensure emergency equipment is regularly checked and emergency medicines are accessible in the event of an emergency.
Ensure recruitment arrangements include all necessary employment checks for all staff.
Ensure all nursing staff receive level 2 safeguarding training.
The areas where the provider should make improvement are:
Ensure prescription stationery is tracked to individual practitioners in line with current guidance and the practice policy.
Review and improve the identification of carers in order to provide the required support to these patients.
Continue to monitor and make improvements to address identified concerns with patient feedback regarding care and treatment by nursing staff.
This service was placed in special measures in November 2015. Improvements have been made such that a rating of requires improvement for the delivery of safe, caring and well led services and good for responsive and effective services. This led to an improved rating of requires improvement. I am taking this service out of special measures. This recognises the significant improvements made to the quality of care provided by this service.
Chief Inspector of General Practice
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection at Dr Veena Sharma on 26 November 2015. Overall the practice is rated as inadequate.
Specifically, we found the practice inadequate for providing safe services and being well led. It was also inadequate for providing services for the all the population groups. Improvements were also required for providing effective, caring and responsive services.
Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:
The practice had no clear leadership structure, insufficient leadership capacity and limited formal governance arrangements.
Information about services was available but not everybody would be able to understand or access it. For example, the practice had recognised that they had a high number of their practice population whose first language was not English, yet there were a limited number of information leaflets and posters available in other languages.
The areas where the provider must make improvements are:
Introduce robust processes for reporting, recording, acting on and monitoring significant events, incidents and near misses.
Ensure that safeguarding processes are reviewed to reflect current standards for identifying and reporting of incidents.
Take action to address identified concerns with infection prevention and control.
Ensure recruitment arrangements include all necessary employment checks for all staff.
Carry out DBS checks for staff undertaking chaperone duties
Ensure that a programme of yearly appraisals is implemented and monitor ongoing training requirements and updates for all staff.
Introduce robust clinical governance processes and practice policies including business contingency plans, risk management, record keeping, identifying and acting on complaints, monitoring the quality of service provision and identifying and implement an ongoing programme of clinical audit.
Take action to address identified concerns with patient feedback regarding care and treatment.
In addition the provider should:
Improve processes for making appointments and the availability of non-urgent appointments.
On the basis of the ratings given to this practice at this inspection, I am placing the provider into special measures. This will be for a period of six months. We will inspect the practice again in six months to consider whether sufficient improvements have been made. If we find that the provider is still providing inadequate care we will take steps to cancel its registration with CQC.
Chief Inspector of General Practice