Celebration as Wigan surgeries get step closer to cash boost

Ashton Medical Centre, Astley General Practice and Poplar Street Surgery in Tyldesley all got the top 100 per cent score in the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QoF) results.

QoF is a voluntary annual reward and incentive scheme for all GP surgeries in England with financial rewards linked to achievement of good practice in a range of measures.

That means the three practices run by SSP Health can potentially gain more money from the NHS to plough into better care for

patients.

The practices also had very low levels of exceptions, where patients can be removed from the statistics for various reasons.

Only 0.01 per cent of patients at Ashton Medical Centre asked for this and the level at Astley General Practice was 0.1 per cent.

Dr Sanjay Pitalia, GP and director of SSP Health, said: “Congratulations to our colleagues at these three practices for hitting 100 per cent in the latest QoF ratings, including very low exceptions.

“It shows what great care our patients there are receiving.

“It is also absolutely brilliant that our practices generally have achieved such outstanding results.

“They reflect the hard work of all our staff throughout the year.

“We were especially pleased with the high scores from our new practices, which have joined us within the past year, some of which faced particular challenges in having to achieve the very high standards of care that we expect in our organisation.”

Topping the QoF chart is a considerable achievement as only 12 per cent of practices in England hit the 100 per cent score in 2017-18.

The figure is calculated from a series of measures, including how practices deal with clinical issues, such as kidney disease and heart failure, targets for cervical screening and contraception and indicators for public health, including reducing obesity and managing blood pressure in patients.

SSP Health is celebrating across-the-board success its list of 29 practices across the North West included nine 100 per cent ratings and four scores of more than 99 per cent.