One in seven GP surgeries are failing to meet basic safety standards, a major audit has found.
The Care Quality Commission rated 15 per cent of the 7,365 practices in England as ‘inadequate’ or ‘requires improvement’ for safety.
But the watchdog said the vast majority were providing ‘safe’ and ‘high quality’ care, despite a shortage of doctors and rising patient demand.
In the most comprehensive review so far, the CQC gave 90 per cent of practices an overall rating as either ‘good’ or ‘outstanding.’
They were also given a separate score for safety and this was generally lower than their overall rating.
The Care Quality Commission rated 15 per cent of the 7,365 GP practices in England as ‘inadequate’ or ‘requires improvement’ for safety (stock photo)
Some 84 per cent were rated ‘good’, 1 per cent ‘outstanding’, 13 per cent ‘requires improvement’ and 2 per cent ‘inadequate.’
This means that approximately 1,100 practices covering 8.5million patients either require improvement or are inadequate for safety.
Common failings include surgeries keeping out-of-date medicines or failing to carry out competency checks on locums.
GPs say their surgeries are overwhelmed due to the pressures of the rising and ageing population, a lack of government funding and a shortage of doctors.
Many are threatening to close their lists to new patients on the basis they can no longer provide safe care.
The CQC’s review is based on inspections of 7,365 practices between 2014 and 2017. Those given the worst ratings were re-visited and the watchdog found the majority had made substantial improvements.
GPs say their surgeries are overwhelmed due to the pressures of the rising and ageing population, a lack of government funding and a shortage of doctors (stock photo)
Professor Steve Field, chief inspector of general practice at the CQC, said: ‘Having inspected and rated 7,365 general practices across the country, we have found that the clear majority are safe and of a high quality.
‘The challenge is for this focus on quality to be maintained and for general practice to be supported in continuing to give patients this high standard of care in future while embracing and driving the changes elsewhere in the system.’
The watchdog pointed out that the average number of patients registered with a GP surgery had increased by 7 per cent between 2013 and 2016.
Dr Richard Vautrey, chairman of the British Medical Association’s GP committee, said the positive results ‘are down to the hard work of GPs and practice staff, but many are in an environment where they are increasingly struggling to deliver effective care to their local communities’.
GPs are increasingly merging to form ‘super surgeries’ with 100,000 patients on their lists and as many as 60 doctors, according to the CQC.
It said they tended to provide a higher standard of care.