Annex D: Standard Reporting Template
2014/15 Patient Participation Enhanced Service – Reporting Template
Practice Name: Blackwood Health Centre
Practice Code: M91637
Signed on behalf of practice:
Date:
Signed on behalf of PPG:
Date:
1.
Prerequisite of Enhanced Service – Develop/Maintain a Patient Participation Group (PPG)
Does the Practice have a PPG? YES
Blackwood Health Centre patient representative group has been active since 2005. This is an established group which is well advertised in the area through local magazines on a dedicated patient representative group board in the surgery, through notices in local businesses, and on the surgery web site. The group meets approximately every six weeks, has a chair (Mrs Jenny Haswell), produces minutes of the meetings and plays an active role in raising money and buying equipment for the surgery, taking part in surgery activities such as the recent CQC visit to the surgery in October 2014, and providing advice on the recruitment of staff and the development of new services. In the past the PRG has also run a number of educational events for the practice and local population on health related issues. The regular six weekly meetings provide an opportunity for PRG members to voice their opinions to Dr Andrew Thornett, lead GP, who attends those meetings together with the practice manager, Kerry Haldron. Method of engagement with PPG: Face to face, Email, also several members of PRG have executive roles in local community groups and provide links for
PRG into community through these, also PRG runs intermittent educational activities which involve surgery and community.
Number of members of PPG: 8 regular members, 10-12 others intermittently
Detail the gender mix of practice population and PPG:
%
Practice
PRG
Male
41%
45%
Female
59%
55%
Detail of age mix of practice population and PPG:
Breakdown of patient list by age and gender: Age mix of PPG:
%
PRG
<16
17-24
8.8%
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65-74
24.6%
42.9%
23.7%
> 75
Detail the ethnic background of your practice population and PRG:
This data demonstrates that Streetly has a largely white Caucasian population. There is a small ethnic minority population, mostly comprised of people of Asian ethnic origin. The age range is spread across the spectrum. The surgery has the oldest patients on average of any surgery in the Walsall borough. Members of the PRG are all from a white British background. Breakdown by ethnicitiy Describe steps taken to ensure that the PPG is representative of the practice population in terms of gender, age and ethnic
background and other members of the practice population:
In the past, membership has included younger members but the PRG has found it difficult to recruit and sustain involvement from these and other parts of the surgery population, due to school and work commitments. Meetings have been trialled in the evenings without success, and the PRG has instead used educational events, articles in the local media, its web site presence and its own surveys in the past to both obtain information about the needs and wants of the practice population and to interact with that population. It has also set up a virtual group in order to increase opportunities for participation of patients who cannot make meetings. During this year, the PRG engaged a wide range of the surgery’s patient population in a drive to raise money for a new electronic couch for the surgery. Over £1000 was successfully raised – a substantial amount for a surgery of this size and a new couch purchased. The PRG is planning an educational event in May 2015. Three such events have been held in the past and all have been successful at attracting a wide range of attendees from across the socio‐demographic groups in Streetly. The events are held in local social spaces outside of the surgery and include health related talks on topics of interest to the local population from Dr Thornett and other invited speakers, and stalls manned by groups from both NHS organisations and the voluntary sector. In addition, the PRG has discussed the staff profile with the surgery and, as a result, the surgery now employs three part time doctors of Asian extraction, one of whom recently qualified from medical school (therefore younger in age) and also employed a younger nurse to join the nursing team, and a new younger receptionist. This has led to a change in the staff mix that better reflects the socio‐demographic profile of the patient population. Are there any specific characteristics of your practice population which means that other groups should be included in the
PPG?
e.g. a large student population, significant number of jobseekers, large numbers of nursing homes, or a LGBT community?
No
2.
Review of patient feedback
Outline the sources of feedback that were reviewed during the year:
The six weekly PRG meetings provide an opportunity for continual and regular dialogue around improvement in services at Blackwood Health Centre. During this last year, a particular issue has been the proposed merger of Blackwood Health Centre with the Oaks Medical Practice based in King standing in Streetly. This has been discussed with the PRG who, following these discussions, wrote a letter to Dr Thornett which was incorporated into the merger discussions and agreed with the senior partner at the Oaks Medical Practice. That document includes a request that Dr Thornett should remain the main doctor running clinical services at Blackwood Health Centre itself, that the health centre should retain the name as Blackwood Health Centre while it still exists as a separate branch of the new organisation, that patients registered at Blackwood Health Centre should still be able to book most of their appointments to occur at this particular building, that the new organisation would endeavour to try and not move staff round more than absolutely necessary, and that one of the two Streetly branches will not be closed unless there is a substantial redevelopment or a new building purpose built to serve the needs of the population. In addition, the PRG co‐ordinates and manages donations to the practice and provides oversight on choice of what this money will be spent on, and the decision making process around this provides a further opportunity for the surgery to communicate with members on their views of the surgery and where improvements can be made. In this last year, the PRG has purchased a new electronic couch for Dr Thornett’s room and also two further couches for other doctor’s rooms, improving the ability of the surgery to deliver services for disabled patients. Previous couches were static and some of the older patients of the surgery were finding it difficult to get up on to these couches so one which can be lowered in height was a particular need of older patients, and this need had been identified by the PRG through its discussions with other members of the patient and practice population. Further, the PRG played a key role in the CQC visit in October 2014. They arranged a PRG meeting at lunch time at that date and invited the CQC team to take part in that meeting and to share lunch with them. The CQC valued this opportunity greatly and used it as a chance to improve their knowledge of patient views of surgery services, and indicated before they left that they felt the PRG was an example of excellence in the surgery. The feedback given to the CQC was then discussed with Dr Thornett and the practice manager at subsequent PRG meetings. How frequently were these reviewed with the PRG?
See above
3.
Action plan priority areas and implementation
Priority areas 1, 2, 3
Description of priority area:
Further to discussions between the PRG and Dr Thornett and the practice manager, the following three priorities for improvement in the practice have been identified: 1. Provide an opportunity for patients to discuss the development of GP services in the Streetly area with Dr Thornett in an open forum. 2. Improve access for patients on a Thursday afternoon. 3. Reinstate the television in the waiting room in order to improve confidentiality. What actions were taken to address the priority?
The action plan for carrying out these priorities was: 1. The PRG intends to run an educational session in May 2015 covering a range of areas relevant to the local population and include in this an open session for patients to discuss local health developments and plans. Update 28/1/2015=plans have been developed for this activity which will be discussed further at the next PRG meeting. 2. The surgery intends to use funding provided by the CCG in conjunction with Over 75s initiatives to open the surgery on a Thursday afternoon. Update 28/1/2015=the surgery is now open on Thursday afternoons. 3. The surgery will obtain the services of a television technician to get the TV working. Update 28/1/2015=the TV is now working again in the waiting room. Result of actions and impact on patients and carers (including how publicised):
Update 28/1/2015 1. Plans have been developed for this activity which will be discussed further at the next PRG meeting. 2. The surgery is now open on Thursday afternoons, publicised through notices, practice leaflet and via local pharmacist and via website. 3. The TV is now working again in the waiting room. Progress on previous years
If you have participated in this scheme for more than one year, outline progress made on issues raised in the previous year(s):
The PRG’s role as a key advisor to the surgery has developed and regular attendance by the practice manager in addition to the lead GP at meetings is a new development this year to maximise the usefulness of this aspect. The PRG has been remarkably effective at raising funds for the surgery in this last year – and the way they spend this money reflects their view of the needs and wants of patients. The proposed merger with an adjacent surgery was a new issue and the PRG has helped shape the development of services post this merger, obtaining consent to all their requests. We have found it very difficult to increase regular attendance by younger members of the patient population. Our patients prefer to access services as they need rather than attend meetings., and many attempts to change times/dates/etc. in the past have demonstrated this. However, communicating via issues which are of interest to them, such as proposed mergers, purchase of new equipment, etc., has led to increased virtual participation and their views are then fed back to the surgery via PRG members. This year we have opted not to ask patients to complete survey as they are somewhat “surveyed out” post‐CQC preparation and surveys for revalidation of doctors conducted earlier in the year. 4.
PPG Sign Off
Report signed off by PPG: YES
Date of sign off:
How has the practice engaged with the PPG:
How has the practice made efforts to engage with seldom heard groups in the practice population?
By personal invitation, through patient surveys over last few years, posters on issues of relevance, educational activities in
conjunction with PRG, via website.
Has the practice received patient and carer feedback from a variety of sources?
Yes – although survey not conducted this year has been done in previous years and surveys were available at result of
revalidation earlier in this year in any case. PRG members able to feedback comments and opinions of patients via regular PRG
meetings to lead GP and practice manager.
Was the PPG involved in the agreement of priority areas and the resulting action plan?
Yes
How has the service offered to patients and carers improved as a result of the implementation of the action plan?
Yes
Do you have any other comments about the PPG or practice in relation to this area of work?
Practice regularly communicates with PRG, good relationship between PRG chair and Lead GP/practice manager, team approach
leading to improvement and change.