Enter and view: Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, Clinic 4, Head and Neck

Healthwatch Shropshire gathers information on people’s experiences of health and social care services and there are times when it is appropriate for Healthwatch Shropshire to see and hear for ourselves how services are being provided. These visits are called ‘Enter and View’, and can be ‘announced’, ‘semi-announced’ or ‘unannounced’. For ‘semi-announced’ visits the service provider is told we will visit but not the date or time of the visit.

The purpose of this visit was to understand the way this combined clinic works (doctors in different specialties work on the same afternoon, to meet the various needs of cancer patients in particular), the pressures on the clinic and its impact on patients.

The summary of findings included: The waiting area is small for the number of patients who attend the clinic. At times Healthwatch Shropshire saw several patients standing in the corridor until a seat became available. The seats are functional and were not rated highly for comfort. Patients had mixed experiences of how long they had to wait before being called to their consultation. Two patients told Healthwatch Shropshire they did not like to leave the waiting area to get drinks or go to the toilet in case they missed being called. The sign to the toilets cannot be seen from the waiting area. Reception staff did not cover for each other, leaving some patients confused and without information. The consulting rooms are well equipped, but there is no room for privacy or for confidential advice when the clinic is busy. The notice boards give a lot of useful information, and are well laid out. The electronic screen changes too quickly for some notices to be read in full (e.g. about earwax removal). Just over half the patients (13) we spoke to had been attending the clinic for less than one year. Two were attending for their first appointment. Over half the patients (13) we spoke to required more than one clinical speciality during their course of treatment. Several of these made comments about how well organised their visits were to include all the necessary elements. They were very appreciative of the flexibility of the staff to fit in all that was needed on these occasions. Generally both the quality of information about their condition and the treatment itself were highly rated by patients. However one patient said they would have appreciated more guidance on what to expect after their surgery. Patients praised the support offered by volunteers for people attending audiology. Almost all patients we spoke to had received notification of their appointment time and date by letter. This was sent in good time.

The report contains 6 recommendations which includes a response from the provider.