Dr Lloyd & Partners
Westrop Surgery
Patient Participation Group Annual Report 2011/2012
Overview of the group
The Westrop Surgery Patient Participation Group (PPG) is a mix of face to face and virtual (e-mail based) groups, this ensures maximisation of patient coverage and an alternative method of delivery to meet the needs of much of the practice population. Current membership stands at 9 face to face members and 75 in the virtual group. For the surgery Dr Simon Stacey is the group clinical lead and Debra Perry (Practice Manager) is the group liaison for non-clinical/administrative/communication. The key liaison contact for the group is still to be determined but it was noted in the minutes of the first meeting that several members were enthusiastic to chair future meetings.
Demographics of the group
The methods used to recruit members were:
- an invitation to join via the practice website
- registration forms handed to patients arriving at the surgery for an appointment
- posters displayed in the waiting areas
- a message in the practice leaflet inviting new patients to join the group
- an article in the local Link
When giving forms to patients presenting for an appointment care was taken to distribute them in an even spread across all age ranges but other than that the circulation was random to apply best efforts to ensure the PPG was representative of the practice population.
The practice has a predominantly Caucasian population so it was difficult to recruit members from ethnic minorities. We do however have one member in the real group who is non-English. Dr Stacey did contact several patientsto invite them to join the PPG but they declined.
The virtual group members currently stands at 76 but membership will continue to grow, the age ranges of the virtual group are as follows:
Under 16s 2
17-24 3
25-34 6
35-44 9
45-54 9
55-6416
65-7418
75-8413
The face to face group is made up of 9 members. There are 6 male and 3 female members, 1 of the members is a wheelchair user; the age ranges in the group are:
35 – 441
55-644
65-743
75-841
Meetings
The first meeting of the newly formed Westrop Surgery Patient Participation Group was held on Monday 31st October 2011. At this initial meeting Dr Stacey explained that the motivation behind forming the group was to develop a bridge between patients, staff and doctors.
The aim of the first meeting was to determine:
- which areas we might want to consider for review
- what we want to include in a patient questionnaire to the web based group
- agree a time to meet again to discuss the results of the questionnaire
- the format for future meetings and how they are organised
After lengthy discussion the group reached agreement on the following issues as being the main priority for our first patient survey:
- Getting through on the telephone can sometimes be difficult and we need to think of options to make improvements to this part of the service. Are we making best use of the technology available within the current phone system or is it becoming outdated and unable to cope with the call levels we now have.
- Results of tests which are considered within acceptable limits and need no further action by the doctor are currently not relayed to the patient as a matter of course. It was felt that consideration should be given for a system for this to be done either by phone, text or email. On discussion it was thought that all or any of these methods could be problematic, for example ringing patients would require more staff to be available and would also cause incoming telephone lines to be blocked. Texting patients to alert them that a result is ready could be an option but in the first instance would take some time to implement until all patient mobile phone numbers were available within the clinical system. Currently within the parameters of clinical system we use, email is not an automated option to us. There were also comments that some patients who did not use text or email would be at a disadvantage if either of these options were considered. Although Dr Stacey and Debra Perry could see the points being made it was also noted that there are no concerns within the practice with the current system. The general message to patients is that if there is a problem with the results of a test the system used by the hospital to alert the surgery and in turn a doctor to relay advice to a patient is very robust. Most routine test results are returned to us within a couple of days now and patients can ring us if they want to for the result of their test.
- Clinical letters from the hospital following a referral or procedure are very slow to reach patients, sometimes taking up to two weeks. Could we lobby the hospital to improve this?
- When the doctors clinics are running late could we make sure that patients in the waiting room are kept informed. Debra said that we do make every effort to do this but agreed that it could be better.
- Some parts of the interior of the building should be considered for improvement:
- The door from the waiting room to the consulting area is difficult to negotiate for anyone in a wheelchair or parents with buggy’s.
- The waiting area could be improved
- The website has improved but some information is difficult to find.
- Some patients find it difficult to hear what is said on the patient announcement system. Some doctors walk down to the waiting area to collect patients, should this be done by all of the doctors, should we consider a visual patient call system?
After the meeting minutes were sent to the PPG members and Dr Stacey produced a patient survey based on the seven areas which were considered to be the main priorities for assessment. This survey was sent by email and post to the members of the web-based group on the 17th November 2011.
Survey results, PPG discussions and action plan
The results of the survey were collated and sent to the PPG members for review, in preparation for the second meeting of the group which was held on Wednesday 22nd February. At this meeting the results of the survey were discussed and it was noted that several of the questions posed on the survey had been met with quite favourable responses. Questions 1 -6 all had fairly low scores on the negative answers so we concentrated on the issues with the less positiveresults and those with specific comments when developing the following action plan toconsider changes and improvements within the practice.
Building – questions 7 & 8 of the survey attracted the most comments from patients:
- It is important to me that the surgery has a modern interior
- The waiting room is a pleasant environment to be in
Suggestions were received about books, magazines, toys, children’s play area, water dispenser, new pictures and some more significant comments about improved seating, re-decorating, more modern interior, better system for calling patients.
After careful consideration it has been decided to address these issues and plans have started to make improvements to the reception desk and waiting area. A company which specialises in surgery improvements has been consulted and we shall continue to consult with the PPG members when work begins and changes progress to seek their opinion on various aspects of the project.
Patientcalling system –there were several concerns about the announcement system which some doctors use to call their next patient; it was suggested that consideration should be given to start using a visual display at each end of the waiting room instead.
The cost of installing this type of system is beinglooked into and will be taken into account with the other improvements being made.
Patient information –the range of patient information leaflets available is extensive but it was noted that it is often difficult to find specific information. A more uniform approach to displaying information would improve this.
Improvements have already been made to notice boards and leaflet displays
It was also suggested that we should consider having a patient information screen which consistently scrolls health advice.
Enquiries are being made about the use of a display screen for health advice. However it should be noted that this system is usually funded by advertising, which the doctors would not want so unless an alternative can be found this particular suggestion may not go ahead.
The practice website is a good source of information but it was commented that it is not adequately advertised.
It was agreed to include the website address in letterheads and appointment cards. For Dr Stacey to mention it in his regular feature in the Highworth Link and to advertise the website address on posters in the surgery.
A quarterly newsletter was also suggested and the Practice Manager explained that plans for this to happen were already in place and the first newsletter will be available on the website and in paper form in the waiting room hopefully by the end of March.
This is the first report from the results of a survey since forming the new PPG which sets out plans to address issues raised by patients. The group will continue to work with doctors and staff to evaluate improvement from changes and consider new options for making services and premises better. It is anticipated that the PPG will continue to grow, new members are always welcome and can sign up by either collecting a form from reception or via the practice website at
Practice Opening Times
Highworth
Monday to Friday0800 –1830
This surgery offerslate evening additional sessions for pre-booked routine appointments only. To book or cancel these appointments, you must telephone the surgery between 0830- 1830 Monday to Friday. These sessions will be held at the following times:
Tuesday1830 –19451 GP on duty
Thursday1830 - 1945 2 GPs on duty
For appointments or to speak to a receptionist or GP telephone 01793 762218
Blunsdon
Reception Opening Hours
Monday1500 – 1815
Tuesday0845 – 1215
Wednesday1500 – 1830
Thursday0845 – 1215
Friday 0845 – 1215
Consulting Times
MondayDr Stacey1500 – 1700
TuesdayDr Bestwick0900 – 1100
Wednesday Dr Lloyd1600 – 1800
Thursday Dr Metcalfe0900 – 1100
Friday Dr Frost/Helyer/Bruen0900 – 1100
For appointments or to speak to a receptionist or GP telephone 01793 721254
Dr Lloyd & Partners March 2012