Ridgeway View Family Practice Hosted a valuable PPG meeting last Friday.
We would like to thank the dedicated PPG members for chairing the meeting and arriving with fresh and insightful advice on how we can better serve our community. Our next PPG meeting will be hosted at Wroughton Family Practice on the 7th of October.
Items Discussed
Staff Changes and GP Roles
- New management team at the practice with Sam Oliver and Ashley Boscott taking over the roles of Practice Manager and Assistant Practice Manager respectively.
- The Practice is encouraging GP and Nurse Training in attempts to future proof from early clinical retirements, we have also become a Tier 2 Visa sponsor to enable wider recruitment.
- The PPG addressed concerns over GP employment, the practice reaffirms that we have 5 GP Partners, 4 GPs and 2 GP Trainees full time here at the practice.
- PPG requests for an organisation chart. This has been uploaded online, with staff roles to be updated. That can be accessed by clicking HERE
Phone Lines and Appointment Bookings
- The PPG raised an important issue regarding our reception services and that it takes too long to be answered.
- The practice has employed the skills of a trainer in care navigation to teach our reception staff to direct calls and schedule appointments more appropriately.
- The practice has invested into a new telephone system in which management will eventually be able to assess the productivity of the reception team and enact targeted performance management to help them improve.
- The practice now has an online form for patients who would like to provide feedback for the reception team which can be accessed from the homepage, but also by clicking HERE
Post-Covid discussion
- After Covid we have seen a demand for appointments go through the roof. More mental health concerns, patients are more anxious, and some patients have delayed treatment due to the pandemic.
- Hospital backlogs are contributing to the high demand on our clinical services. We hope that reception staff being trained in care navigation and resources on our website we will be able to reduce this load.
Operational Practices
- The PPG advised that it would be useful for the practice to be more transparent with the changes occurring in the practice – we aim to have more regular and categorised press releases.
- The Project Assistant is working on a Frequently Asked Question’s page to help patients decide if they need to see a GP or if other services would be more suitable to help reduce the load on clinical staff.
- The practice is considering multiple avenues for community outreach and engagement whether that be social media or direct e-mailing.
What does the PPG want to see from the practice
- The PPG expressed their desire to help the practice and the wider community but wishes to see the practice more engaged with PPG outreach.
- The PPG wants to organise social circles in which they can assist the community in regards to items such as; mental health, well-being and weight loss. They would like to perhaps lean on some practice resources for this.
What does the practice want from the PPG?
We just need as much honest feedback as you can provide, and the practice encourages the PPG to reach out as far as it can into the community and is ready to support your efforts.
As requested by the PPG, we have also created an online suggestion box to gather any ideas patients may have. This can be accessed by clicking HERE
It may prove useful to be prepared for our next meeting with an agenda.
JOIN OUR PPG!
If you are reading this and have not joined the PPG, you can do so by clicking HERE. 🙂
