MINUTES OF PATIENT PARTICIPATION GROUP (PPG) MEETING

HELD ON

WEDNESDAY 5JULY 2017 – CRAIGLOCKHART SURGERY

TUESDAY 11 JULY 2017 – OXGANGS PATH SURGERY

PRESENT: Ruth M Law, Jillian Cubitt

PARTNER: Dr Alexander Ross

MN, KG, NB, JR, LT, MS, DM, DK, JL

APOLOGIES: RD, DB, FG

1. / Minutes of Last Meeting
Taken as read.
2. / New Building
The new building is slightly behind schedule but should still be completed by August and the Practice will be moving at the end of September.
Questions from Previous Meeting
  • Which other services will be in Allermuir Health Centre? District Nurses, Health Visitors, Podiatry, Domiciliary Physio, Speech & Language Therapy, Community Mental Health, VOCAL, Community Pharmacists, Community Mentors.
  • Will door frames be a different colour from doors?Yes, if used by patients.
  • Will signs be colour coded?
  • Will corridors and doors be suitable for wheelchairs? Yes
  • Will the disabled toilet be big enough to manoeuvre a wheelchair?Yes
  • Is there an official agreement with Tesco with regard to patients using their car park? No
  • How will patients be informed of the move? Still to be decided. At the meeting on 05.07.17 it was felt that all patients should be written to, but this would be very costly. At the meeting on 11.07.17 this was not thought to be necessary as long as there is sufficient publicity using a variety of communication channels, e.g. practice website, practice TV screen, notices, prescriptions.
  • Will there be a new telephone number? Possibly.
  • Will there be an open day? Possibly. The next meeting will be held in the new building and group members will be given a tour.
Additional Questions
  • Will cars have to turn left on exiting the Allermuir Health Centre car park?

3. / New Appointment System
Feedback from the meeting on 05.07.17:
  • One of the group members would no longer recommend the Practice to family/friends as they felt that the new system is not giving the right impression to patients. Patients can spend all day waiting to be called back and feel that they are being told to go away. The impression being given is, if the patient is not bad enough for A&E, they will not be seen. It was queried whether more patients are attending A&E as a result of the new system.
  • Another member found it to be very good but felt this could be as he was retired and he thought that it would be more difficult for people who workas they would be limited to when and where they could take calls.
  • Another member was put off calling as she did not want to have to wait in. With the previous system, she would have called and made an appointment for a suitable day. Feels as if she has to beg for an appointment.
  • Another member prefers to speak to a person and just won’t bother if it’s an automated system, which it may be in the new building.
Feedback from the meeting on 11.07.17:
  • Members were generally positive about the new system. They felt it was good for retired people, but might not be so good for people who work. It was explained that all GPs will try to call patients when they’re free, e.g. in a lunch break, as long as they’ve been made aware of this.
  • Dr Ross explained that the new system allows GPs to work more efficiently as they can prioritise better and make sure they can spend longer on a consultation with a patient with more complex problems. It’s also usually easier to ensure that a patient speaks to/sees the same GP, meaning better continuity of care.
  • Concern was expressed that GPs might miss something because he/she doesn’t always see the patient. It was explained that under the old system there were patients who weren’t seen because they couldn’t get an appointment.
  • Ruth confirmed that the new system had reduced the number of wasted GP appointments because patients did not attend.
Ruth explained that we are currently carrying out a patient survey on the new system. This involves both patients who have been called in for a face-to-face consultation and patients who have had a telephone consultation only.
There is a nationwide shortage of GPs, and it is very difficult to find locums. This situation won’t change in the short term.
More innovative approaches to healthcare are required.
4. / AOCB
None.