Feedback Report December 2017 – February 2018: Family Planning Clinic, May Logan Centre

Healthwatch Sefton gathered feedback on family planning services provided by Southport and Ormskirk NHS Hospital Trust at The May Logan Centre in Bootle between December 2017 and February 2018. A total of 44 reviews and feedback forms were collected from patients, visitors and staff. Overall, the service achieved an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, with feedback analysis showing 77% positive, 18% neutral and 5% negative sentiment. 

The strongest areas of performance were staff attitude and the quality of treatment and care, both of which received 100% positive feedback. Patients consistently described staff as friendly, professional, caring, informative and non-judgemental. Many respondents highlighted that staff helped them feel comfortable discussing sensitive issues and maintained confidentiality and dignity. Treatment and advice provided were also highly valued, with many people reporting positive experiences even when attending for the first time.

The main concerns related to access to services, particularly waiting times and the operation of drop-in clinics. More than half of comments about waiting times were negative, with some patients reporting waits of over an hour. Several attendees said that arriving later in a drop-in session could result in being turned away because the clinic had reached capacity. Some respondents suggested introducing appointments or a mixed appointment and drop-in system to improve access, particularly for people who worked during the day.

Feedback was generally positive regarding the clinic's location, with convenience and distance to travel receiving 100% positive comments. However, concerns emerged during separate engagement with young people and youth workers. Participants reported that the withdrawal of sexual health outreach services from local community venues had reduced access. Young people described concerns about confidentiality, long waits, the possibility of being turned away and being recognised by people they knew at the clinic. All participants involved in the youth engagement felt that having sexual health services delivered within local youth and community settings would help improve access. 

Healthwatch concluded that the service demonstrated significant strengths in patient care, professionalism and treatment quality. Recommendations focused on reducing waiting times, addressing issues with patients being turned away from drop-in clinics, improving communication about waiting systems and considering the reintroduction of community-based sexual health services for young people. In its response, the Trust confirmed plans to review clinic capacity, staffing, appointment arrangements and promotion of outreach services, while also improving communication about how patients are prioritised and called for appointments.