A GP practice in Feltham, West London has been put in ‘special measures’, a Care Quality Commission (CQC) report published today has shown.
Little Park Surgery was rated ‘inadequate overall’ after a CQC inspection in October 2017 found that it was inadequate for ‘safe’ and ‘well-led’ and required improvements for being ‘effective’ and ‘responsive’.
The practice was already rated as ‘inadequate overall’ after an inspection in October 2016 and another one in September 2017.
Chief inspector of general practice professor Steve Field said: ‘I am placing this service in special measures. Services placed in special measures will be inspected again within six months.
‘If insufficient improvements have been made such that there remains a rating of inadequate for any population group, key question or overall, we will take action in line with our enforcement procedures to begin the process of preventing the provider from operating the service.’
The practice provides care to 6,240 patients and has two GP partners, three salaried GPs and two trainee GPs at the practice.
The CQC has asked the practice to improve the way it handles its recruitment procedures, after it found that ‘recruitment checks had not always been undertaken prior to employment’.
Little Park Surgery will also have to ensure it follows national guidance for what concerns infection prevention and control, according to the CQC report.
The report said: ‘We found expired products including needles, syringes and sterile dressings.’
CQC deputy chief inspector of GP Practices Professor Ursula Gallagher said: ‘If there is not enough improvement we may move to close the service.’
‘On a positive note results from the national GP patient survey showed patients were treated with compassion, dignity and respect and were involved in their care and decisions about their treatment.’
The practice has refused to comment.
