Scarborough GP practice rated inadequate partnering with another practice in bid to improve care

Central Healthcare, based at Lawrence House Medical Centre, was told it could face closure if it did not improve following the rating by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Now the practice at the medical centre and its branch surgeries - Prospect Road and Peasholm - is partnering with Haxby Group, which was rated “Outstanding” by the CQC.

Haxby Group, which runs GP surgeries in Hull and York, will provide support and mentoring to Central Healthcare aimed at improving services for patients in Scarborough.

Central Healthcare’s GP partners say that, aware of the requirements to improve the practice’s services to meet the recommendations of the CQC, they have been investigating partnership opportunities for some time.

Earlier this year, the practice consolidated its healthcare services onto two sites due to problems with staffing availability.

By partnering with Haxby Group, they say they hope to strengthen their services, improve recruitment and “bring innovative patient care practices to Scarborough”.

Central Healthcare GP Partner Dr Omnia Hefni said: “We would be the first to acknowledge that there have been some challenging times for our practice and patients recently, but the team here have been working exceedingly hard, regardless of the pandemic, to address immediate issues.

“At the same time, we have been looking to ensure that our patients get the best possible service moving forward and to importantly get the best support for our committed and caring staff.

“We are also committed to engaging with our patients during our improvement journey to ensure they are with us every step of the way.”

Haxby Group GP Partner Professor Michael Holmes said: “This is a great opportunity for Haxby Group and good news for Scarborough.

“We are really keen to start working with the team at Central Healthcare and learn from patients.

“We have been impressed and moved by the enthusiasm and commitment the Central Healthcare team have and we will jointly be talking to patients and listening to the people of Scarborough in the coming months.”

Meantime, Central Healthcare has announced it will no longer take prescription requests over the phone from September 1.

The practice says it is seeing “a significant number of discrepancies between what the patient believes they have ordered and what has actually been requested by our patient services team”.

It says these mistakes are often as a result of difficulty with the pronunciation of drugs and confusion over repeat medication requirements.

Many patients are also being treated for increasingly complex multiple conditions.

The practice said: “The risk of error has the potential to cause patients harm or contribute to failing to address their treatment needs.”

Repeat prescriptions can be organised online or requested via email or in person.