The GP partners and all the team at Richmond Medical Centre wanted to be open and honest about the outcome of our latest Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection.

You may have already seen in the news that our CQC report was published today, and everyone connected to the medical centre is disappointed with the rating we have received.

We want to take this opportunity to reassure patients that we are all working hard to improve things so we can provide patients with the quality of care they deserve.

The CQC carry out inspections every couple of years, and our latest inspection was carried in May this year. 

As a medical centre we have faced several challenges over the past 12 months, and we accept that at the time of the inspection, some of our processes were not to a standard we all aspire to.

We are pleased that during the inspection the CQC acknowledged that our staff treated patients with kindness, respect and compassion and helped them to be involved in decisions about care and treatment.

Since May we have taken on board the findings of the CQC inspection and have made significant changes to our internal processes. Hopefully our patients will have noticed improvements during this time.

We feel that the report published today no longer reflects our current position and we are working closely with the CQC to be reinspected as soon as possible.

We would like to thank all our staff and patients for their continued support during what has been a difficult time for us all.

Please use the below link to provide feedback to the CQC on how you feel about the care provided by Richmond Medical Centre

https://www.cqc.org.uk/give-feedback-on-care

Use NHS 111 - call, go online or use the NHS app

If you are ill or hurt and need help fast, but it is not a 999 emergency, remember to Talk before you Walk:

• Call 111, open 24/7. Your call will be answered by a highly trained operator who will be able to assist you in the convenience and safety of your own home.
• Visit 111.NHS.uk.
• Use the NHS app.

The online services ask you a series of questions to help identify your symptoms and recommend safe and appropriate action to take. This could include:

• booking an appointment at an Urgent Treatment Centre
• arranging for a prescription to be available for collection from a pharmacy
• arranging an online consultation with a GP
• a telephone or video consultation with a clinical professional

• Parking at Moor Lane Site

• Patients are advised to park in the Sports Centre/Health Centre Car park to the rear of the building. If you require disabled/drop off parking please inform Reception who will be able to advise you as to the best areas to park.

  Parking at Village Site
• Patients are advised to park in the main car park where there are designated disabled spaces.

Our premises have suitable access for disabled patients. Our disabled facilities include: 

• Automatic doors and special toilet facilities and there are no steps 
• There is a wheelchair available for patient use 
• We have hydraulic couches in all the treatment and consulting rooms to provide comfortable examination facilities for the elderly or disabled 
• There are comfortable easy sitting/ standing chairs in the waiting room for the infirm and elderly
• There is a portable hearing loop for the hearing impaired
• Our reception desk has an area for wheelchair access and confidentiality
• A lift is available at Moor Lane site for those who cannot use the stairs
• All signs are on yellow paper to assist the visually impaired

Routine immunisations are still important to prevent the resurgence of vaccine preventable diseases. The provision of these services have not been affected by COVID 19 and these appointments are available with our team.

NHS England and Improvement specialty guide: maintaining routine immunisation programmes during COVID-19 (nice.org.uk)

We will be contacting patients who are eligible for both Pneumonia and shingles vaccinations. The Pneumonia vaccine is available for all patients over the age of 65  - usually this is a one off dose. The shingles vaccine is available for patients age 70 - 79.