Partners at Royal Manor Health Care are thanking the commitment and efforts of staff at the practice having received an overall Care Quality Commission (CQC) rating of Good following a recent inspection.

The CQC play a crucial role in regulating and inspecting GP practices. Their objective is to ensure that healthcare services meet the required standards of quality and safety. The inspection, which took place in August, rated the practice across various aspects such as patient safety, effectiveness of treatment, responsiveness of services, quality of care, and leadership within the practice.

Noting significant improvements since the last inspection in May 2022 which resulted in a rating of Requires improvement, all areas were rated as Good by inspectors.

A number of examples of good practice were mentioned in the report including:

  • A culture of openness in the practice with a shared vision
  • Positive feedback regarding accessing urgent on-the-day care, an efficient flu vaccination clinic and staff’s professional approach and friendliness
  • Initiatives to improve access for registered patients including those who are workers by offering earlier appointments, those affected by cancer by giving them easy access to on-the-day support and patients who are frail, to preventative treatment to keep them living well for longer
  • Staff said they felt well supported by their management team
  • Using patient feedback to create an action plan following the national GP Patient Survey
  • Working on health initiative and care planning to improve the health and support of asthmatics.

In addition to the inspection, the CQC team also spoke with a member of the Patient Participation Group (PPG) who was positive about the improvements in the practice and the work that had been put in by the team.

Patient Participation Groups are run by volunteers and work alongside practice teams within GP surgeries. As well as providing feedback to practices on the services it provides and helping get information out to the wider patient population, groups work on projects which bring health and wellbeing benefits to their fellow patients.

Emma Smailes, Practice Manager said,

“We are thrilled with the improved rating from the CQC and I would personally like to say thanks to the team at the practice and everyone who has been working extremely hard to make these improvements happen.

“In common with other practices we are having a challenging time at the moment, not least in terms of demand and staffing so I would also like to thank our registered population for their patience and understanding over the past year and going forward as we continue to make improvements that will benefit local people.”

The full report can be read on the CQC website [Royal Manor Health Care – Care Quality Commission (cqc.org.uk)].