Patient survey is ‘inappropriate’

MELKSHAM’S two GP practices  have criticised the recent NHS GP Patient Survey, labelling some of its questions as ‘inappropriate’.

The survey highlights some areas for the practices – Giffords Surgery and Spa Medical Centre – to improve, including how easy it is for patients to contact both practices by telephone.

However, the surgeries have explained that some of the questions in the survey do not take into account their ‘expanded workforce’ and how calls are fielded by reception staff.

On behalf of Spa and Giffords Surgeries, clinical director for Melksham and Bradford on Avon PCN, Dr Jonathan Osborn, told Melksham News, “We note the results of the recent NHS Patient Survey which is carried out by post annually on a random selection of patients from all GP practices in England. This year the data was collected between January and March (2020).

“We are working extremely hard to provide excellent health care for our patients, and are proud of the way our staff have responded to the challenges of Covid-19 pandemic. Like most GP practices throughout the country we have had to make significant changes to the way we work, and the majority of GP practices now work on a ‘telephone first’ system with face-to-face appointments usually on the same day if required.”

The results of the NHS GP patient survey, published in July, said that 91% of patients surveyed of Spa Medical Centre, and 78% of Giffords Surgery patients surveyed, described their overall experience of the practice as ‘good’ – compared to the local CCG average of 85%, and the national average of 82%.

Both practices performed below average when the patients surveyed were asked if they find it easy to get through to their practice by phone – 54% of Giffords’ patients and 53% of Spa Medical Centre patients said ‘yes’, compared to the local average of 72%, and the national average of 65%.

Also, 33% of Giffords’ patients said that they usually get to see or speak to their preferred GP when they would like to, compared to the local average of 50%, and national average of 45% – Spa Medical Centre scored 55%.

Dr Jonathan Osborn, added, “We note that the survey may have been completed by patients before and during lockdown, and before some of the changes listed below. It also should be noted that we have expanded our workforce to include staff with specialist skills such as first contact physiotherapists, mental health specialist nurses, clinical pharmacists, paramedics and social prescribers, all of whom work as a team to try to provide the most appropriate care for each patient. 

“This means that we ask our receptionists to ask patients some questions when they call in,  to help us work out the most appropriate health professional for them. Therefore the question “…They usually get to see or speak to their preferred GP when they would like to…” seems inappropriate, particularly given that the majority of the survey questions ask about contact with a healthcare professional. We are delighted to see that the satisfaction rate with our receptionists is above the national and CCG average.

“We have also made significant changes to the way we consult with patients, including video and telephone consultations, and the ability to request photos from patients. We have done this to try to reduce the number of people that physically have to attend the surgery, as this may increase the risks of Covid-19 transmission to both staff and patients.

“Following national and local recommendations, each practice is looking at increasing the use of digital technology including 24 hour online access to records and blood results and the ability to request medications online.

“Other improvements include issuing prescriptions for longer periods to a pharmacy (such as 6 months) for specific patients with well-controlled and stable conditions. Some practices are promoting the use of an online symptom checker such as Doctor Link to help patients decide on the best pathway for them. All of these things are helping us to free up telephone capacity to improve the ease of access for patients.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has been a difficult time for all GP practices, given the scale and speed of the required changes. However we are very proud of the professionalism and dedication of our staff, and the passion with which they seek to do the best for each individual person.  We feel that we are working together in a collaborative and supportive way as part of our Primary Care Network (PCN), our patients are already seeing benefits in the form of extra staff roles mentioned above and we continue to provide an excellent service to our patients in challenging circumstances. We want to thank all of our patients for their understanding and support.”