Enter and view: Southam GP Surgery, Warwickshire
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Healthwatch Warwickshire conducted an Enter and View on Southam Surgery, an NHS GP Practice with 8100 patients on 24 March 2017.
Observation by the Enter and View representatives reported that:
- the building, though old, was in good condition
- there is one disabled parking space, wheelchair access, hearing loop, toilet with disabled facilities
- there is clear guidance on notifying surgery of arrival and an electonic check in system
- the online booking system is advertised
- there is an active Patient Participation Group (PPG)
Patients who provided responses to the questionnaire:
- generally rated the booking system as excellent or good, though negative comments were made about the difficulty of getting an appointment when needed;
- mainly rated the opening hours as excellent or good, though some comments were made to suggest evening hour appointments were needed;
- rated access to the GP surgery as good, though several comments suggested parking could be better;
- almost all rated the cleanliness and hygiene as excellent or good;
- almost all rated their GP as excellent or good;
- almost all rated their nurse as excellent or good;
- generally rated the reception staff as excellent or good, though additional comments gave a mixed view;
- commented that they sometimes experience delays in being seeing on time;
- almost all rated the overall quality of care, treatment and service as excellent or good;
Recommendations were made with regard to:
- addressing patient concerns about the appointment booking system
- improving the advertising of extended opening hours
- informing patients of delays impacting their appointments
- providing a comment/complaints box in reception
The Practice Manager responded to the report's recommendations:
- explaining the recent GP sickness absence that could have led to the patient concerns about appointment booking
- stating that whilst extended opening hours are widely advertised they have tried to make this more prominent
- they have a verbal announcement process in place to inform patients of delays to their appointments
- they would consider providing a complaints box