CQC Places Bucks GP Practice in Special Measures As a Result of Poor Leadership and Governance

England’s Chief Inspector of General Practice for the CQC has placed The Mandeville Practice in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire into Special Measures following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission in April 2017.

Inspectors rated the service as Inadequate for being effective and well-led, and as Requires Improvement for being safe, caring, and responsive to people’s needs.

Key findings of CQC’s inspection included:

• Although there was an open and transparent system in place to report and record significant events there was no evidence of learning and sharing of this information with staff.
• There was a new leadership structure in place; however communication between the provider and practice could be improved and the vision and mission statement was also not adequately supported by and effective leadership and governance structure.
• Blank prescriptions forms and pads were not securely stored during opening hours. Blank prescription forms were stores in printers and unlocked consulting room.
• Records for care and treatment provided to patients must be kept securely.
• The practice must seek and act on feedback to continually evaluate and improve the services.

Ruth Rankine, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice CQC’s South region, said “The leadership structure, governance and culture did not assure us that the practice was able to deliver high quality care. This put people using the service at risk of not receiving the care, which everyone is entitled to receive from their GP practice."

“As a result of these and other areas of concern we are placing the practice into special measures, so the practice can receive the support it needs to improve."

“We will continue to monitor this practice and will inspect again in six months to check whether improvements have been made. If we find that the service remains inadequate, we will consider taking further enforcement action.”