Ringmead Medical Group statement as follows:
Ringmead Medical Group accepts the findings of the CQC in its report which was published on Friday (9th August), relating to an inspection in February and March this year.
“All of us at Ringmead are committed to making our services better for our patients and since the CQC inspection we have been working extremely hard - and continue to do so - to make the improvements required”.
“On 1st July last year, Ringmead Medical Practice and Sandhurst Group Practice merged to form Ringmead Medical Group.
“The new practice is a five-surgery practice, providing primary care services to more than 42,000 residents of Bracknell, Crowthorne, Sandhurst and Owlsmoor.
“Since the merger our team has been working incredibly hard to not only integrate the different staff, processes and teams together but also to continue to deliver day-to-day health services to our patients, at a time of sustained high demand. This has been a huge task and has created considerable extra demand on our already busy practice team.
“Despite this, we have been making improvements to our systems to benefit our patients. We have introduced a new digital triage system – Klinik – part of enhancing patient access to services and increasing capacity within the practice to be able to respond to more patient enquiries in a timely way.
“We were an early adopter of the NHS app, giving our patients easy 24/7 access to health services and information. We have also made great strides in reducing the backlog of prescriptions which needed to be reviewed.
“To demonstrate the level of activity, in June 24 alone, Ringmead Medical Group reviewed 13,742 online consultations (around 60% increase since March 24), provided 7,030 face-to-face appointments, held 7,065 telephone consultations, made 1,509 referrals for treatment, conducted 1,660 blood tests (similar to March 24) and issued 12, 057 prescription items.
“Since the CQC inspection in February 2024, we have developed an action plan to tackle the areas the CQC team identified: We have already carried out multiple outstanding patient reviews and set up new processes to improve our management of some patient groups; We have completed most of the outstanding refresher training for staff where required, to ensure our team provides the best and safest care, armed with the latest information; We have reviewed our complaints process so that patients can be assured that their voices are heard and the practice learns from their experiences; We have firmed up our recruitment, employment and training processes, and; We haveprogressed the programme of workaround the facilities at our different sites, such that we are now at the stage required by the regulations.”
“Dr Anant Sachdev, Senior GP Partner at Ringmead Medical Group, said: “An unbelievable amount of work has been carried out by the team here at Ringmead in recent months, and am pleased to say that we have already addressed many of the recommendations and findings by the CQC. Work will continue at pace still,but we appreciate we still have some way to go to stabilise the merged practice to the standard we are aiming for. In addition to employing many more permanent doctors and nurses, we have also employed new staff including managers to help manage the practice. We have already progressed the processing of outstanding work such as illness and medication reviews and putting in place processes to ensure there is safety and high quality of care delivered by the practice.
“We’re all committed to making our services better for our patients and we also want Ringmead to be a great place to work. We realise, however, that improvements on the scale we’re working at do not happen overnight. We still have a way to go and the CQC report is part of identifying those areas where we need to do better.
“Ringmead patients should rest assured that while we are working on the improvements, access to, and delivery of day-to-day services and treatments remains the same and we would encourage anyone with any new or ongoing healthcare concerns to contact us in the normal way.”
Ringmead Medical Group is committed to maintaining high standards of patient centred care and ongoing quality and improvement. We continue our good relationship with Ringmead Medical Group patient participation group (PPG) and meet regularly with them to keep them informed of our action plan and progress.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does the rating mean?
The rating of Requires Improvement means the inspectors have identified areas in which they want us to make changes to meet the required standard and have also commented on areas that are good. Together, we have agreed an action plan that will facilitate the practice in achieving the desired rating within the next 12 months.
Are the services I receive from the practice safe?
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspects us in very fine detail across all aspects of our work in order to certify us to provide general practice healthcare services to our patients. Inspections are a key way of monitoring quality and safety and identifying areas where practices need to improve. On inspection, CQC rated some areas of care provision as good with many positive findings as detailed in their report. However, under the safety section of the report the inspectors identified areas for improvement. Patient safety is of paramount importance to us, and we are pleased to say that we have already addressed many of the points raised and are working hard to ensure any remaining concerns are resolved as soon as possible.
Please let us know if you ever have any concerns over the safety of any of the health services you receive from us.
Will I still be able to get an appointment/see a GP at Ringmead?
Your access to our day-to-day healthcare services is not affected. If you need to contact us for advice about any new or ongoing health concerns, please contact the practice in the usual way.
We would strongly recommend getting in touch with us for any reviews or health checks that patients feel haven’t been completed in a timely way, and we shall appoint them as appropriate with the right health professional.
Should I have had a medication review?
Medicines are prescribed by designated healthcare professionals in very specific circumstances and in response to individual clinical need. Medication reviews are a way of ensuring a person’s medication is still appropriate, particularly if that person’s circumstances have changed i.e. whether their condition has improved or worsened, whether they have begun taking other medications, etc. Older people, people with long-term conditions and those on multiple repeat medications are most likely to be invited to have regular reviews over the next few months. Patients can request a review if they are concerned about their medication or their reaction to it.
What does the report mean for me as a patient of Ringmead Medical Group?
The report and the work we’re now involved in are part of monitoring and improving the way we work and deliver services. It does not impact on your relationship with us.
Will Ringmead be taking new patient registrations?
Yes. New registrations are not affected. You can find information on registering with the practice here: https://www.ringmeadmedicalpractice.org.uk/joinpractice
How has the merger impacted the practice’s performance?
The merger of Ringmead Medical Practice and Sandhurst Group Practice has been a considerable undertaking which has added to the workload of the team at the practice over the past year.
Combined with the responsibility of providing day-to-day health services to our patient population in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, with demand for services being extremely high, and significant workforce shortage (clinical and non-clinical), this has placed additional pressure on Ringmead Medical Group. Despite this, it remains the case that the merger was the best option and was fully supported by the NHS Integrated Care Board, to maintain the provision of primary care services for many thousands of people across Sandhurst and Owlsmoor. The alternative was a potential risk of a shortage of cover in the area otherwise, and patients having to register with alternative GPs. Once the merger transition has been fully completed, Ringmead Medical Group as a whole will be able to move forward and develop as a larger, more resilient practice for the benefit of all concerned – but has to be appreciated that this will take some time, although much progress has been made.
What has changed since the merger?
There have been many significant changes, with the alignment of merged practice processes and infrastructure – all aimed at benefitting patient access and care.
- We have adopted the online tool Klinik for those that are able to use online facilities, but the alternative way of contacting the practice still exists – in person, or by telephone.
- We have a new internet phone service with call-back facility. The introduction of this technology was enabled and supported by our local NHS commissioners, in line with advancements taking place at many other GP practices.
- We are continuing to promote the use of the NHS App by patients, which helps with ordering medication, checking results and notes, without the need to contact the practice in any way.
- We are employing and have employed new staff including 5 more permanent GPs (total 23 GPs), nurses, allied health professionals (paramedics, pharmacists), and administration team – to increase capacity of urgent and routine appointments and help with processing of prescriptions, incoming mail, and quality work internally. For example, in June 24 (a snapshot of a single month):
- 13,742 online consultations received
- 7,030 face-to-face appointments
- 7,065 telephone consultations
- 1,509 referrals made
- 1,600 blood tests taken
- 12,057 prescription items issued
- We have appointed care coordinators since the merger who are contacting patients for reviews, health checks, immunisations, and cancer screening appointments.
