Views of people living with prostate disease

Healthwatch Bolton undertook research on the views and experiences of people living with prostate disease. They spoke to 20 members of the Bolton District Prostate Cancer Support Group in January 2017 to discuss their experiences of prostate services, PSA testing, GP access and wider health and social care services. 

Participants generally valued specialist prostate services and spoke positively about specialist nurses, who were seen as an important source of information and support. People also identified improvements in the way Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test results were managed, particularly where blood tests were carried out by GPs before consultant appointments, giving patients more time to prepare questions and understand their results. 

The main concerns related to communication and access to services. Some participants found it difficult to contact consultants directly and felt they had to rely too heavily on GPs to communicate with specialist services. Access to GP appointments was also a common concern, with reports of long waits for appointments and difficulty getting through by telephone. Experiences varied between practices, with some participants describing high-quality care and accessible services while others reported significant frustrations.

The discussion also highlighted wider concerns about NHS funding, access to out-of-hours services, inequalities in care provision and the importance of promoting healthy lifestyles. Healthwatch Bolton concluded that improving access to primary care, maintaining good specialist nurse support and continuing improvements to communication between patients, GPs and specialist services were important priorities for people living with prostate disease.