MINUTES OF PATIENT PRACTICE GROUP (PPG) MEETING, 8.6.17
Present: Dr R Y M Loh Patients Present: CA
Dr A Jagota MA
Dr U F Agbim EB
Seema Jagota – Patient Liaison Officer
Apologies: Elaine Aderaye – Practice Manager
JF
NH
Topics raised at the meeting were as follows:
Introduction: Members were welcomed and the agenda of the meeting was distributed to everyone. It was explained there had not been a Practice Participation Meeting for a while due to several members of staff being on long term sick leave resulting in a greater workload for remaining staff and therefore not having the time to schedule a PPG meeting. Members were thanked for their patience. It was also announced that we had two new receptionists, Debbie and Ruth.
Practice Assist: The new triage system was explained. This is a pilot scheme introduced by the Clinical Commissioning Group to improve patient access. Practice Assist is a service offered by Care UK, an NHS funded private company who have a team of doctors that can offer telephone consultations, order tests, refer patients and issue sick notes and prescriptions. They have access to the patients’ medical records so can do this with adequate knowledge of the patients medical history. If they feel a patient needs to be seen face to face, they can book an appointment with a doctor at the surgery.This service is available Wednesdays and Fridays, when the patient rings the surgery they will be given the option of being telephoned by Practice Assist.
Online Services: Dr Loh informed the group it was still a contractual agreement to increase the number of patients who access online services. The group were asked if they had any suggestions. Members said they had been actively encouraging patients in the waiting room and offering to help if necessary. It was mentioned again that there are cultural difficulties and issues with older people using the internet. It was also suggested that many patients prefer a personal service, speaking to staff and being able to collect prescriptions themselves etc.
Self-Arrival Screen: The doctors requested that patients would use the self-service check-in system more frequently to ease the pressure at the reception desk. Members explained that sometimes the screen can freeze if used too often and it was requested that wipes be available to clean the screen as it can get quite dirty with repeated use. This will be discussed with the Practice Manager.
Toilet: It was requested that there be liquid soap available in the waiting room toilet rather than bar soap. It was explained this was a more cost-effective choice as several items had gone missing in the bathroom and waiting room. This will be discussed with the Practice Manager.
CCG Access Scheme: Dr Loh explained the Clinical Commissioning Group have said it is a requirement for surgeries to offer a certain amount of appointments. For this surgery, the number is 441 a week. We actually offer at least 480.
A O B: Dr Jagota informed the group he is taking part in the London Marathon 2018 for St John’s Ambulance Service. He requires a certain amount of money for sponsorship and asked if the group had any ideas. Some suggestions included a “Go Fund Page” on the internet and a collection bucket. He will look into the various options.
CA and RJ mentioned they had some issues with collecting prescriptions. This included certain items not being prescribed and filing errors. The doctors said they will discuss this with staff responsible for prescriptions and hopefully eliminate any problems.
Next Meeting: It was decided that the next meeting would be held in September 2017, a date is yet to be decided.