Chacewater Health Centre

Background to this inspection

Updated 19 September 2016

The Chacewater Health Centre was inspected on the 21 July 2016. This was a focussed inspection to check if areas identified as requires improvement in January 2016 had been actioned.

The main practice is situated in the rural village of Chacewater, Cornwall. There is also a branch surgery in Devoran. The practice provides a general medical service to 5,700 patients of a diverse age group. The practice is a teaching practice for medical students.

There is a team of four GPs partners, two male and two female. Partners hold managerial and financial responsibility for running the business. The team are supported by a practice manager, a deputy practice manager, a nurse practitioner, four nurses, two healthcare assistants and additional administration staff.

The practice also has a dispensary at each location, overseen by a dispensary manager.

Patients using the practice also have access to community nurses, community matron and midwife who are based at the practice. Other health care professionals visit the practice on a regular basis.

Both practices are open between the NHS contracted opening hours 8am until 6.30pm Monday to Friday. Appointments are offered anytime within these hours. The practice offers a range of appointment types including book on the day, telephone consultations and advance appointments. Extended hours surgeries are offered every Saturday morning at the Chacewater Health Centre for pre-bookable appointments between 8.30am and 11.30am.

Outside of these times patients are directed to contact the out of hour’s service by using the NHS 111 number.

The practice have a General Medical Services (GMS) contract with NHS England.

The Chacewater practice provides regulated activities from the main site at Chacewater as well as the smaller branch at Devoran Surgery, Quay Rd, Devoran TR3 6PW. During our inspection we visited the main site at Chacewater.

Overall inspection

Good

Updated 19 September 2016

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out an announced focused inspection at the Chacewater Health Centre on 21 July 2016. This was to review the actions taken by the provider as a result of our issuing two legal requirements. In January 2016 the practice did not have safe systems in place for the safe management of medicines and appropriate risk assessments were not in place to ensure staff within the practice had received appropriate checks and up to date mandatory training.

Overall the practice has been rated as Good following our findings, with safe, effective and well led now rated as good. This report should be read in conjunction with our report published on 20 April 2016 where the responsive and caring domains were rated as Good.

Our key findings across all the areas we inspected were as follows:

The provider had carried out Disclosure and Barring checks (DBS) (DBS checks identify whether a person has a criminal record or is on an official list of people barred from working in roles where they may have contact with children or adults who may be vulnerable) for all staff working within the practice.

A new training policy had been written, including induction training for all new staff and a spreadsheet demonstrating training completed by existing staff.

A comprehensive induction programme and protocols for the pre-employment of Locum GPs had been put in place.

New procedures had been put in place to ensure that national guidance was followed for the safe storage of blank prescription forms and medicines being stored at the correct temperatures.

New procedures had been introduced for the dispensary staff to follow regarding the National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS) reporting system. This system enables patient safety incident reports to be submitted to a national database. The data is then analysed to identify hazards, risks and opportunities to improve the safety of patient care.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP)

Chief Inspector of General Practice