CQC rates a Newmarket GP practice as ‘outstanding’

Orchard House Surgery in Newmarket has been given the highest possible rating by a health watchdog.

The CQC published a report following an unannonced inspection to the surgery in Fred Archer Way on November 30.

Under CQC’s programme of inspections, all England’s GP practices are given a rating according to whether they are safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

Janet Williamson, Deputy Chief Inspector of General Practice and Dentistry in CQC’s Central region said: “People deserve to receive good care that meets their individual needs from staff who are compassionate when they use GP services. It is clear these GP practices are providing an exemplary service to the people living in the areas they serve.

“The hard work of the staff who work at these services is making a real difference to patients. This is why we have found this practices to be Outstanding.”

The CQC inspectors work out an overall rating based on how well the surgeries meet five criteria.

Orchard House’s safety, effectiveness and care was rated ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ for leadership and how responsive they are to people’s needs.

The report says: “The practice actively promoted equality and diversity. It identified and addressed the cause of any workforce inequality. Staff had received training and felt they were treated equally.

“Access to visits, telephone or physical appointments was responsive to the local population’s requirements.

“Staff treated patients with kindness, respect and compassion and promoted patients privacy and dignity.”

The report also hightlights how well the surgery cares for specific groups of the population, such as the elderly, people with long term conditions, families, children and young people, people of working age and people with poor mental health and dementia.

It was given a rating of outstanding for all of these categories too, the report emphasising that staff were compassionate and efficient in dealing with people’s specific needs and that they had the right training and IT systems in place to deliver appropriate care.

The surgery was previously rated ‘good’ at the time of the last inspection in December 2014.