Coventry GP surgery hired healthcare assistant without proof of experience

[dutchman]

The Care Quality Commission has now rated Henley Green Medical Centre as "requires improvement"

A Coventry GP practice hired a healthcare assistant without proof of their experience, according to a damning report.

Henley Green Medical Centre, in Henley Road, was given an overall rating of "requires improvement" by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

And on the question of whether its services were safe, the practice was branded "inadequate".

Prof Steve Field, the CQC's chief inspector of general practice, said: “The practice had not followed their own recruitment policy when appointing staff.

“Staff members had been appointed without proof of experience or references being sought.”

He added the practice must “ensure appropriate pre-employment checks are completed for all staff employed by the practice in line with their recruitment policy”.

The centre’s inadequate score for its services means it will be re-inspected no longer than six months after the initial rating is confirmed.

If after re-inspection it has failed to make sufficient improvement and is still rated as inadequate it will be placed into special measures.

Being placed into special measures represents a decision by CQC that a service has to improve within six months to avoid CQC taking steps to cancel the provider’s registration.

The inspection, which took place on January 10 this year, also highlighted risks to staff and patients were not always assessed and well managed.

It said: “Staff had not received a full range of appropriate training and there was no evidence of health and safety or fire risk assessments. The practice did not carry out fire evacuation drills.”

But it added patients were able to get same day appointments and feedback from patients about their care was positive compared to local and national averages.

The Telegraph has contacted the surgery for a comment.

You can read the full report here.

[rebbonk]

Rather worrying, isn't it?