Queues, out-of-date medicine and no GPs

Among the catalogue failures at GP surgeries found by health regulator inspectors were:

• In one Birmingham practice, people were queuing outside to make an appointment.
• At one practice, both GPs had referred each other to the GMC for incompetence. They were no longer working in the practice.
• In another practice in Leeds, the inspectors turned up but there were no GPs.

• At Dale Surgery in Sneinton in Nottinghamshire, inspectors found maggots and other insects, as well as dust and cobwebs.The surgery immediately sorted out the problem but inspectors said there was "no regular, effective and on-going monitoring of these standards".

• Some GPs left private medical files laying around, had medicines that were out of date, filthy treatment rooms and employed staff who had not undergone criminal record checks.