Minutes from the Patient Participation Group (PPG) Meeting held on

Tuesday 18June2013 @7:00pm at Silver Springs Medical Practice

Attended: Ms Grainne Rodriguez (Practice Manager)

Mr Norman Perry (Patient)

MrJohn Walters (Patient)

Mr Dennis Moon (Patient)

Mr William Burrows (Patient)

Mrs Linda Burrows (Patient)

Mr Chris Farrell (Patient)

Mrs Lorraine Thorogood (Patient)

Mrs Amanda Hildreth (Patient – Minutes)

Mr William Petsing(Patient)

Apologies: None

PPG Objectives

Grainne reiterated the objectives of the PPG.

Patient participation is about patients working with their practices to:

  • Improve communications and information transfer between a practice and its patients.
  • Help themselves and others to be more responsible for their health.
  • Give practice staff the opportunity to discuss topics of mutual interest to the practice.
  • Contribute to continuous improvement of services.
  • Provide practical support and help implement positive changes.

Patient Participation is not:

  • A forum for complaints.
  • A vehicle for people to resolve their own personal issues.

NHS111 update

Grainne: Asked the group if they had used the service since the last meeting and if so, were they happy with it. No member of the group had used it but Grainne reported back that there have been some improvements made to the recording of the telephone consultations.

Dennis: Had a recent experience of A&E when he was told that there was not ENT doctors at A&E over the weekend. He would either have to wait to the Monday or he could go by ambulance to the Eastbourne DGH for treatment.

Grainne: The maternity service is also now a ‘split service’ between the Conquest Hospital and the Eastbourne DGH.

Action: Grainne to ask the patients about the NHS 111 service in the next patient survey.

Flu Vaccinations – ideas for promoting clinics

Grainne: The flu clinic last year did not do very well. There was a very low percentage of patients receiving the vaccine. The low uptake of the vaccine was spread right across the board of patient age ranges. The Drs have suggested that the clinic is slit over two days this year. One day in the week and a Saturday morning clinic (as an alternative for working patients).

District Nurses do not do the domiciliary flu vaccines so this year the practice is considering employing a nurse to go out to the nursing homes etc.

Lorraine: Asked to book for the flu clinic and was refused by the receptionist with the reason being that she did not fall into the risk categories to have the vaccine. Lorraine had had the vaccine in previous years and was confused as to why she couldn’t have it last year. There needs to be some flexibility.

Grainne: Last year we had a surplus of vaccines and so there should not have been any problems for patients to get the vaccination.

Action: Grainne to look into why Lorraine was refused the flu vaccine last year.

Zostavax – Shingles vaccination

Grainne: All patients who are 70 years old this year will be offered the Shingles vaccination. With a catch up programme to follow (no timeline given yet) for patients who are 71 to 79 years old. All patients that are 70 years old will be able to receive the Shingles vaccine at this year’s flu clinic.

Patient Involvement – CCG meeting/Chronic disease

Grainne: The NHS is moving forward in lots of ways. A ‘Breath Easy’ Patient Support Group and a ‘Crones and Colitis’ Patient Support Group have been set up at the Bexhill Health Centre (in the grounds of Bexhill Hospital) which provides information, advice and general support to patient with these diseases.

Individual GP Surveys

Grainne: Every five years the Drs have an appraisal by the General Medical Council (GMC). Part of this appraisal is individual GP surveys. Over the last ten days each Dr has anonymised surveys completed by their patients. These completed surveys are in sealed envelopes and are sent directly to the GMC. The practice does not know what the patient comments are. Also yearly the practice itself has an in house ‘360 appraisal’ for each of the Drs. The appraisals are to ensure that Drs are providing the adequate standard of care, keeping up with new advances in health and medicine and maintaining their specialities.

Automated entrance doors

Grainne: The practice has applied for Planning Permission for Automated entrance doors and for a single storey portacabin (used for practice administration) and are waiting for the outcome. By the time the entrance doors are fitted it will have cost £80,000 of the donation made to the surgery. The family of the patient who kindly donated the money have agreed to the surgery putting up a plaque in her honour.

Recruitment & New Doctors Update

Grainne: Dr Sophia Clarke & Dr Ayad Fidal are happy and settling in very well. They are a welcome addition to the team.

There has been advertisement placed for another GP ‘just in case’ there are any changes to this. Dr Fidal will increase from two days a week to three from July and will then inherit half of Dr Young’s patients. Dr Rae would like to reduce a day which would make the surgery short of one day. The advertisement is for two days which would cover Dr Rae’s day and give a whole extra day.

John: Asked when the practice brochures would be updated.

Grainne: The brochures will be updated and reprinted when we are sure that the new Drs are staying.

Condolences to the family of Dr Young (Senior) who died recently.

Liquid Nitrogen Clinics

Grainne: Clinics will be held every two months with two clinics having already been booked. The next clinic will be in July.

Drs First

Grainne: The new Drs are now using Drs First and are getting to grips with the system. There have been a couple of occasions when patients have been kept waiting in the surgery and the Drs have been spoken to about this.

Mrs Burrows: Telephoned the surgery for an appointment at 2:00pm on one occasion to speak to Dr Schneider. At 3:30pm Mrs Burrows rang the surgery back as she had not heard anything. Mrs Burrows finally received a telephone call from Dr Schneider at 5:45pm that evening. The receptionist did not explain to her that the afternoon surgery does not start until 3:00pm. If she had it would have saved Mrs Burrows waiting about all afternoon for the telephone call.

Grainne: The receptionist should be advising patients of the times of the surgeries and clinic ad prioritising.

Action: Grainne to raise the issue of reception staff informing patients what time surgeries start with the Reception Manager.

Doctors Specialities

Each Dr within the practice has one or more specialities:

Dr Rae - Heart Disease

Dr Fidal - COPD

Dr Clarke - Palliative Care – also does Homeopathy

Dr Spalek - Sexual Health, Family Planning, Minor Surgery, Prescribing Lead (Controlled Drugs).

Dr Schneider - Diabetes

Newsletter

Items for the next bi monthly newsletter:

  • Alternatives to long waits at A&E – suggesting to patients that if they use the Walk In Centre or speak to a pharmacist they may be able to save themselves a long wait at A&E and this would also cut down the amount of patients who check in at A&E and then do not wait for treatment (which the surgery is charged for).

Go to NHS Choose Well website You/Tube videos to see reasons not to go to A&E.

  • District Nurses Services – This service is for housebound patients. District nurses cannot be contacted by patients directly. Patients requiring this service need to get in touch with the surgery who will then contact the District Nurse team.
  • Flu Vaccine - Good Reasons why to have the Flu Vaccine this year!
  • Information about Shingles- Shingles vaccination to be available for patients who are 70 years old. This will be offered at this year’s flu clinic (Dates to be arranged)
  • Patients and local pharmacies to be informed of the surgery closure on the afternoon of Wednesday 17 July 2013 for practice training. (PATIENTS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COLLECT PRESCRIPTIONS).
  • Do Something Amazing! Give Blood – Information about the blood service. Reasons to give blood contact: or call 0300 123 23 23
  • Chronic Disease Patient Support Group meetings – which are held every second Monday of each month between 2:00 – 4:00pm at Bexhill Health Centre (in the grounds of Bexhill Hospital) current groups are ‘Breath Easy’ on 8 July and ‘Crones and Colitis’ on 12 August 2013

Action: Norman to put produce the next newsletter.

AOB

Mr Burrows: Attended a recent eye clinic at the Conquest Hospital and noticed a sign stating that: The time you have been given for is your book in time, not your appointment time. Mr Burrows just wanted to make others aware of this.

Chris: Went into a COPD clinic and came out feeling ill. I receive letters talking about my chronic Lung disease. I feel fit but there’s nothing wrong with me. The information I receive at these clinics scares me and I come out feeling worse.

Mr Burrows: Agreed that he felt the same too.

Grainne: Julie our nurse is highly regarded as being an extremely good COPD nurse. Julie will only provide you with information and advice which has your best intentions for your health. You must speak to Julie about this if you feel uncomfortable at these appointments.

Date of next meeting:

Tuesday 20 August 2013 at 7:00pm

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