PATIENT PARTICIPATION (PPG) GROUP

 

1. THE PATIENT PARTICIPATION GROUP CONSTITUTION .

 

The purpose of the PPG is to provide a mechanism to communicate the views of the patients in the local community about health care issues to Huntingdon Road Surgery (HRS). This will help inform HRS in making decisions about the healthcare it provides.

 

The PPG will:

 

1. Review and help develop communication strategies to inform patients and the community about the healthcare provision offered by HRS.

 

2. Act as a steering group for Patient Representative Group (PRG) activities. This will include developing mechanisms to collect the views about the needs of patients in the local community as regards healthcare and the commissioning of patient surveys. It may also, as appropriate, establish focus groups to consider specific topics.

 

3. Publicise the results of feed back and the patient surveys.

 

4. Make recommendations to HRS arising from patients and the community feedback about healthcare provision, mindful of the constraints associated with statutory and professional demands of HRS.

 

5. Work with HRS to communicate health awareness to its patients and the local community, and also to encourage appropriate use of the healthcare services in order to optimize their effectiveness.

 

 

The PPG is a voluntary body composed of the following members:

 

• the Assistant Practice Manager
• at least one GP Partner
• patient representatives

 

The standing members will have the ability to co-opt additional members.

 

Members are encouraged to facilitate the communication of views of the patient groups they represent.

 

Meetings are held every 2 months.

 

2. MEMBERSHIP OF THE PPG

 

The Practice has had a PPG since June 2009. This group consisted of a small number of patients who volunteered to be actively involved with the development of the Practice. In accordance with our wish to gain the views of all our patients and following the publication of a new Directed Enhanced Services (DES) for 2011 it became clear that there was a need for the PPG to represent a greater cross section of the patient population. So during 2011 the Partners were asked to identify patients, who they thought would be interested, from a selection of different backgrounds. These included, but were not limited to, members of ethnic minorities, patients with disabilities and patients with young children. Invitations were issued and we were gratified to receive a number of acceptances. Our current PPG has a membership of 24 patients.

 

3. JOINING THE PPG.

 

We want our PPG to be truly representative of our patient population and so we encourage you to join. We understand that not everyone will be able to come to the meetings but we would like to know your views so are happy to communicate via email or post. We can send you copies of the minutes from the meetings and include any issues you raise on the agenda. If you are interested in joining please let us know. Either leave a note with your name, address and ‘phone number at reception or call the PPG Secretary (Julie Steel) on 01223 364127.

 

4. REACHING AGREEMENT.

 

Meetings of the PPG are held every 2 months. All the members of the PPG are invited but it is understood that not everyone will be able to attend. Because of this the agenda and any supporting information is sent out in advance of the meeting and all PPG members are encouraged to pass any thoughts, ideas or issues to the meeting Secretary beforehand. This way everyone’s views can be heard whether they are able to attend the meeting or not. At the meeting the items on the agenda are discussed and attendees get the chance to raise any other business they feel should be considered. The secretary records the decisions and compiles a set of minutes which are sent to all PPG members within the following week.

 

5. AREAS TO INVESTIGATE IN THE RECENT SURVEY

 

During 2011 the PPG discussed what should be included in our most recent survey and agreed on three things:

 

a) To ask about our normal opening hours and to seek opinions regarding proposed changes to our extended hours.

b) To see if patients are aware of our website.

c) To highlight how to contact a doctor out of hours rather than attend A&E when not appropriate

 

We also wanted to repeat some of the GPAC survey questions so we can compare our current performance with how we were doing at the last survey.

 

Specific questions were included in the survey to cover these items. The results of the recent survey can be found under the “Patient Survey Results” tab.

 

 

 

 

PATIENT SURVEY RESULTS 2011

 

1. PURPOSE OF THE SURVEY

 

What our patients think is very important to us here at Huntingdon Road Surgery. We are keen to know your views and get ideas on how we can improve our service. To help us do this we have adopted the NHS Directed Enhanced Services (DES) about Patient Participation. To fulfil the requirements of the DES we must perform regular patient surveys and include questions that have been specifically agreed with the Patient Participation Group (PPG). The first of these surveys was conducted during November 2011.

 

2. DISTRIBUTION OF THE SURVEY

 

We wanted to have our survey completed by as wide a range of patients as possible and raised this with our Patient Participation Group (PPG). As a result of this we chose to distribute the survey in a variety of ways. These included the usual method of having questionnaires in the surgery for visiting patients to complete. We also targeted a number of streets where many of our patients live and posted questionnaires with stamped, addressed envelopes to them. Some of our PPG members took questionnaires to various institutions and collected the completed forms to return to us and we included the questionnaire on our website. By using all these methods we were able to get the return that we wanted.

 

3. RESULTS OF THE SURVEY

 

a. Here is a brief overview of the results from the recent patient survey. Total number of surveys received = 334. There is also a copy of the questionnaire with the responses that can be found under the “Patient Survey Detailed Results” tab.

		Patient Population	Survey
Answers by patient sex:	M F Other	51% 49% 0%	29% 68% 3%
Answers by Patient Age Group:	<16 16-44 44-64 65-74 >75	12% 55% 19% 7% 7%	1% 33% 22% 19% 24%
Answers by Patient Ethnic Group:	White Black Asian Mixed Chinese Other	66% 0.8% 6% 1.4% 3% 1.6%	91% 1% 4% 1% 2% 1%

 

b. The reason we received more questionnaires than expected from our female patients and from our older patients can be explained by them coming to see the Doctor or Nurse more often than our Male and/or younger patients do. The ethnic origins of the patients who responded does seem to reflect our patient population quite closely.

c. Answers to the specific question on opening hours (Q7)

The survey answers show that 93% of those who answered are happy with the normal opening hours at HRS of 8.15am to 1pm and 1.45pm to 6pm.

The 4% who said they weren’t happy comprised of 15 patients of whom:

10 are employed, 4 are students and 1 is unable to work due to long term sickness:

9 are Female, 5 are Male and 1 gave no answer:

13 thought that morning opening would be helpful, 1 did not and 1 did not answer.

c. Answers to the specific question about out of hours service (Q9)

83% were aware of the out of hours service, 12% were unaware and 5% either didn’t know or did not respond.

d. Answers to the specific question about the website (Q10)

At least 50% of patients answering the survey were unaware of the Practice Website. (46% were aware, 50% were unaware and 4% gave no response).

e. Answers to the specific question about the overall experience of the Surgery (Q25)

96% answered excellent/very good/good. 4% fair and >1% poor or very poor.

4. AGREED ACTION PLAN

   

a. The survey showed that a majority of our patients were happy with our normal opening hours and suggested that it would be helpful to offer extended hours appointments in the early mornings. The PPG have agreed a 12 month trial that will replace the Saturday morning surgery with 2 days a week of early opening. At the end of this period the success of the trial will be assessed.

 

b. The survey showed that over half of the respondents were not aware that we have a website. After discussion with the PPG we are running an advertising campaign to improve awareness amongst our patients.

 

c. The majority of questionnaires we received were very positive and complimentary and we want to thank you for your very kind comments. Those comments which identified problems will be reviewed by the staff with the aim of improving our services where we can.

 

d. The next survey will ask for information on how our patients travel to their appointments as it is felt that this may have a bearing on opening hours at the surgery.

 

 

HUNTINGDON ROAD ASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE

 

We would be grateful if you would complete this survey about Huntingdon Road Surgery. All our staff want to provide the highest standard of care. Feedback from this survey will help them to identify areas that may need improvement. Your opinions are very valuable.

Please answer ALL the questions that apply to you by ticking in one box, unless more than one answer is allowed. There are no right or wrong answers and your doctor will NOT be able to identify your individual answers. We are trying to reach as diverse a selection of patients as possible and are using a number of different ways to distribute the survey. So we apologise if you receive multiple copies and ask that you just complete the survey once.

 

About yourself

 

Q1 Are you?

         Male    29%  Female      68%

 

Q2 How old are you?

         Under 16         1%

         16 to 44           33%

         45 to 64           22%

         65 to 74           19%

         75 or over       24%

 

Q3 Do you have a long-standing health condition?

          Yes                                  52%

          No                                   43%

          Don’t know/ can’t say     3%

 

Q4 What is your ethnic group?

            White                                91%

            Black or Black British      1%

            Asian or Asian British      3%

            Mixed                               1%

            Chinese                            2%

            Other ethnic group           1%

Please specify…………………..

 

Q5 Is English your first language?

       Yes   89%     No  10% – what language do you  speak? …………………….

 

Q6 Which of the following best describes you?

        Employed (full or part time, including

           Self-employed)                                  28%

        Unemployed / looking for work         2%

        Student at university / college           13%

        At school or in full time education     1%

        Unable to work due to long term

           Sickness                                               3%

        Looking after your home/family         7%

        Retired from paid work                      43%

        Other                                                    3%

   Please specify………………………...   

 

 

 

Normal opening hours at Huntingdon Road are 8.15am to 1pm and 1.45pm to 6pm.

 

Q7Are these times convenient for you?

 

             Yes                    93%

             No                      4%

             Don’t know       7%

 

We plan to replace our limited Saturday morning surgery with additional opening hours before 8am on two days each week. The new more complete service will include blood test appointments that are not possible on Saturdays. We hope that this will prove more popular with patients.

 

Q8 If the normal opening times are not convenient to you, do you feel this will be helpful?

 

             Yes                    45%

             No                      10%

             Don’t know       12%

 

Q9 Are you aware you can call the out of hours GP service (Urgent Care Cambridge) for urgent advice or assessment, outside normal opening hours? Call the surgery first to get the telephone number.

 

             Yes                       83%

             No                        12%

             Don’t know          3%

 

Attending A&E for routine medical problems will often result in a long wait and will cost the local health economy resources that will need to be taken away from the provision of other services

 

Huntingdon Road Surgery Website

 

We have recently been developing our website at www.huntingdonroadsurgery.co.uk

And are keen to make it as useful and informative as possible.

 

Q10  Were you aware that there is a surgery

         Website?

 

           Yes                 46%

           No                  50%

 

 

Q11 We would like your suggestions as to how the website could be improved further, and what additional facilities you would find helpful. Please write suggestions in this box.

 

Comments are not included here.

 

About Receptionists and Appointments

 

Q12 How helpful do you find the Receptionists at the surgery?

 

         Very helpful          66%

          Fairly helpful       28%   

          Not very helpful    1%

          Not at all helpful   1%

          Don’t know           2%

 

Q13 How easy is it to get through to someone at the surgery on the phone?

 

           Very easy              32%

           Fairly easy            52%

           Not very easy          8%

           Not at all easy         2%

           Don’t know             0%

           Haven’t tried          3%

 

Q14 How easy is it to speak to a doctor or nurse on the phone at the surgery?

 

            Very Easy             19%

            Fairly easy             40%

            Not very easy          6%

            Not at all easy         0%

            Don’t know             3%

            Haven’t tried         30%

 

Q15 If you need to see a GP urgently, can you normally get seen on the same day?

 

             Yes                                              75%

             No                                                7%

             Don’t know /never needed to     17%

 

Thinking of times when you want to see a particular doctor:

 

Q16 How quickly do you usually get seen?

        Same day or next day                                        34%

        2-4 days                                                            29%

        5 days or more                                                  16%

        I don’t usually need to be seen quickly   9%

        Don’t know, never tried                                     9%

 

Q17 How do you rate this?

        Excellent                 29%

        Very good               27%

        Good                       14%

        Fair                         13%

        Poor                         3%

        Very poor                 0%

        Does not apply       10%

 

Thinking of times when you are willing to see any doctor:

 

Q18 How quickly do you usually get seen?

 

        Same day or next day                                   62%

        2-4 days                                                       18%

        5 days or more                                             1%

        I don’t usually need to be seen quickly      5%

        Don’t know, never tried                                11%

 

 

 

Q19 How do you rate this?

        Excellent                              39%

        Very good                             25%

        Good                                    15%

        Fair                                       3%

        Poor                                      1%

        Very poor                             0%

        Does not apply                     11%

 

 

Thinking of your most recent consultation with a doctor or nurse.

 

Q20 How long did you wait for your consultation to start?

        Less than 5 minutes               18%

        5 – 10 minutes                        42%

        11 – 20 minutes                      24%

        21 - 30 minutes                        6%

       More than 30 minutes              3%

       There was no set time for my

           Consultation                            0%

 

 

Q21 How do you rate this?

        Excellent                                 27%

        Very good                               27%

        Good                                       21%

        Fair                                         12%

        Poor                                          5%

        Very poor                                1%

        Does not apply                        2%

 

About care from your doctors and nurses

 

Thinking about the care you get from your doctors and nurses overall, how well does the practice help you to:

 

Q22 Understand your health problems

 

         Very well                         80%

         Unsure                             11%

         Not very well                    2%

         Does not apply                  5%                    

 

Q23 Cope with your health problems

 

         Very well                          77%

         Unsure                              13%

         Not very well                      2%

         Does not apply                   5%

 

Q24 Keep yourself healthy

 

         Very well                            69%

         Unsure                                14%

         Not very well                       3%

         Does not apply                   10%

 

Q25 Overall, how would you describe your experience of your GP surgery?

 

         Excellent                              46%

         Very good                            33%

          Good                                    14%

          Fair                                        3%

          Poor                                       1%

          Very poor                              0%

 

Q26 Would you recommend the surgery to someone who has just moved to your local area?

 

         Yes, definitely                       72%

         Yes, probably                        22%

         No, probably not                    2%

         No, definitely not                    0%

         Don’t know                             2%

 

 

How good was the last GP you saw at each of the following?

If you haven’t seen a GP in your practice in the last 6 months, please go to Q 33

 

Q27 Giving you enough time

         Very good                   59%

          Good                          21%

          Fair                              6%

          Poor                              1%

          Very poor                    1%

          Does not apply            1%

 

Q28 Listening to you

         Very good                   64%

          Good                          18%

          Fair                              5%

          Poor                            1%

          Very poor                   0%

          Does not apply           1%

 

Q29  Explaining tests and treatments

         Very good                   59%

          Good                          20%

          Fair                              5%

          Poor                             1%

          Very poor                    0%

          Does not apply            4%

 

Q30  Involving you in decisions about your

         Care

         Very good                    55%

          Good                           21%

          Fair                              5%

          Poor                             1%

          Very poor                    0%

          Does not apply            6%

 

 

 

Q31  Treating you with care and concern

         Very good                    60%

          Good                           20%

          Fair                              6%

          Poor                             1%

          Very poor                     0%

          Does not apply            2%

 

Q32 Did you have confidence and trust in the

        GP you saw or spoke to?

          Yes, definitely              72%

          Yes, to some extent      15%

           No, not at all                  1%

          Don’t know / can’t say  2%

 

How good was the last nurse you saw at each of the following?

If you haven’t seen a nurse in your practice in the last 6 months please go to the end.

 

Q33 Giving you enough time

         Very good                     61%

          Good                           17%        

          Fair                               2%   

          Poor                              1%

          Very poor                     0%

          Does not apply             7%

 

Q34 Listening to you

         Very good                     59%

          Good                            18%

          Fair                                3%

          Poor                               0%

          Very poor                      0%

          Does not apply              8%

 

Q35  Explaining tests and treatments

         Very good                      52%

          Good                             21%

          Fair                                 5%

          Poor                                 0%

          Very poor                       0%

          Does not apply              10%

 

Q36  Involving you in decisions about your

         Care

         Very good                       47%

          Good                               17%

          Fair                                  5%

          Poor                                 1%

          Very poor                        0%

          Does not apply               17%

 

Q37  Treating you with care and concern

         Very good                         58%         

          Good                               19%

          Fair                                   2%

          Poor                                  0%

          Very poor                         0%

          Does not apply                 9%

 

Q38 Did you have confidence and trust in the

        Nurse you saw or spoke to?

          Yes, definitely                  68%

          Yes, to some extent          12%

           No, not at all                     0%

          Don’t know / can’t say     7%

 

Q39. If you have any other comments or suggestions about the Practice please feel free to record them in the box below. However, please be aware that we cannot promise to take action, or give feedback, on all the points raised. They will be passed forward for consideration by the staff and the Patient Participation Group.

 

Specific comments are not included here but some general points are addressed below. 

 

There were a couple of comments requesting newer reading material in the waiting rooms. All our magazines are donated to us by generous patients. We don’t normally accept magazines that are over 3 months old but are very happy to receive ones that are more recent and in good condition. Please have a word with the receptionists if you have any reading materials that you feel would be suitable for the waiting areas.

 

Ordering repeat prescriptions can be done via the website. You need to speak to reception staff or the Prescription Clerk to get a personal identification code so you can use this system.

 

We are unable to have on-line appointment booking at the moment as the system is quite complicated. The best service is provided by the Reception Staff who understand which appointments are available at any time.

 

The website has been updated recently and should be much easier to navigate. Please take another look. Specific comments about the layout are always welcome.

 

For safety reasons we do not provide an email facility to the clinical staff. Mailboxes are all individual and if a Doctor or Nurse is on leave an urgent message could be missed