AN Andover doctors’ surgery is celebrating one year under current leadership by looking back on its achievement of the past 12 months.

Adelaide Medical Practice on Adelaide Road was at risk of closure last year, after the Care Quality Commission ranked it ‘requires improvement’ and GPs gave notice “ending their contract to provide services”.

But on September 1 2020, a new merger saw fresh faces take up partnership in the practice, and the facility continued to operate.

Now, one year on, the surgery has recently been rated ‘good’ by the CQC in all key lines of enquiry, as well as ranking as the 22nd best practice of 133 best GP in Hampshire and Isle of Wight patient satisfaction results.

Partners Philip Heiden, Paul O’Halloran and Bev Scowen are celebrating as survey results indicate that staff satisfaction has also turned around, with 100 per cent of staff saying they feel supported and 92.9 per cent having seen an improvement in the practice.

Engagement with patients has also improved, with the patient participation group going from 25 individuals to over 2300 virtual participants who now complete surveys and receive newsletters.

“The clinical side has always been good, but the premises and managerial aspects needed wor,” said managing partner Philip Heiden, as he outlined how a combination of improvements - from a lick of paint on the walls, to regular development meetings, to investing in staff resources - have made a huge difference.

“It’s easy to forget that morale is really important, and rewarding your staff, and all those kinds of things.

“What we turned around was the resilience of the practice.”

He continued: “It’s impossible to change everything overnight, but we wanted to start injecting some good news. The quality of staff was really good, but ther ewasn’t that team support.”

Mr Heiden added that the most impressive thing for him has been the progress in 12 months given a “very difficult landscape” of the coronavirus pandemic

The vaccine rollout programme has been a drain on resources for the team, but Mr Heiden said that it has also had a positive impact in showing staff just how valuable they are.

Dr Paul O’Halloran added: “There’s still lots to do, we are far from done, but we are happy with the journey so far.

“I think it’s amazing credit to everyone working here that they are doing as well as they are but it’s difficult.

“The thing I am most proud of is how the team has responded to the changes. Without exception, they have exceeded anything that I really thought they could do. The foundations are there for a really successful practice and they should be proud of what they have done.”

Moving forward, the team is looking forward to achieving new milestones, including playing an active role in a covid restoration programme to clear backlogs of appointments, and to encourage illness prevention strategies within the Andover community.