Inspectors were so concerned about what they saw at an Oldham GP practice, they immediately banned it from operating for four months

A GP practice serving one of Greater Manchester’s most deprived communities has been banned from operating for four months after regulators uncovered a catalogue of basic failures - including failing to follow up on a child reporting breathing difficulties for three days.

Jarvis Medical Practice in Glodwick has had its registration with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) suspended after ‘serious concerns’ passed to the body led to a snap inspection last month.

Inspectors found the practice, based at Glodwick Primary Care Centre, was failing 20 separate standards, many of them relating to patient safety.

It noted ‘poor quality’ and conflicting records that were sometimes impossible to properly understand and urgent home visits delayed or not carried out at all.

In one case a patient with a lump apparently received no physical examination and was not referred for tests or scans ‘due to Covid-19’.

Inspectors also found examples of patients with breathing difficulties, including a child, who were not dealt with for days after they got in touch. In one case no further contact was made for 11 working days, with no explanation provided in the patient's notes.

The practice, which serves more than 5,000 patients in the Oldham neighbourhood of Glodwick, has now been suspended by the CQC until October 11.

Read full story

Source: Manchester Evening News, 17 July 2020