Enter and view: Clevedon Medical Centre

Healthwatch North Somerset carried out an Enter and View visit to Clevedon Medical Centre on 10 January 2018 as part of a programme of visits to GP practices to better understand patients’ experiences of primary care services. The visit involved observations of the premises, discussions with the practice’s Business Manager, and a review of the practice website and out-of-hours telephone service. No direct patient feedback was collected during the visit.

Overall, the practice was found to provide a clean, modern, spacious, and well-maintained environment. The building and grounds were in good condition, with clear signage, accessible entrances, disabled parking spaces, and good public transport links. Internal areas, including treatment rooms, waiting areas, and toilets, were observed to be clean, well organised, and accessible for people with mobility needs. 

The report highlighted a number of examples of good practice. These included a dementia clinic that reviews both patients and carers, a chronic disease education programme, specialist clinics for conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, the employment of a pharmacist, paramedic and physician associate within the practice, and plans to introduce additional specialist services.

The practice demonstrated a strong focus on supporting older and vulnerable patients. It employed a specialist elderly care nurse who supported residents in local care homes, undertook regular GP ward rounds in care homes, and operated a “gold standard” system to prioritise palliative and crisis patients. The practice also increased GP appointment times from 10 to 12 minutes to support continuity of care and better meet the needs of its older patient population. 

The report noted several initiatives that had been introduced in response to patient feedback. These included extending Saturday services, maintaining telephone queue position information, developing IT support for patients wishing to use online services, producing patient newsletters and information leaflets, and introducing a text messaging service for communicating normal test results. 

Reception staff were observed to be friendly, approachable, and easily identifiable. Waiting areas were spacious, offered adequate seating, and included features such as electronic self-check-in screens, hearing loop facilities, water dispensers, a private breastfeeding area, a room for health promotion activities, and a screened area for patients who became unwell. 

The practice website was generally easy to navigate and provided information on registration, opening hours, complaints procedures, and out-of-hours services. However, the reviewer noted that users needed to switch from the mobile version to the full website to locate some information, and there was no direct contact information for the Practice Manager. The out-of-hours telephone message provided essential information but ended abruptly without advising callers that they could not leave a voicemail.

Healthwatch concluded that the practice demonstrated many examples of good practice and provided a welcoming and accessible environment. The report made three recommendations: displaying opening hours in the atrium, introducing a carers’ information board, and adding photographs to the staff information board to help patients identify staff members.