Enter and view: Cirencester Health Group

Healthwatch Gloucestershire visited Cirencester Health Group, which runs two GP practices, on 31 October 2023. The visit was part of ongoing partnership with with NHS Gloucestershire and the CQC to support improvement patient experiences in GP practices in the county. It was also supporting a wider Healthwatch Gloucestershire project on accessing GP services.

The visit took place over three sessions, involving 46 patients. Information was also collected from observations of the communal areas. On the whole patients were complimentary about staff at the practice, though patients did raise concerns about the time it can take for the phone to be answered and the difficulty of getting an appointment for a non-urgent issue.

The report makes nine recommendations.

1. Ensure that patients are kept up-to-date with the planned changes to the phone system
2. Review availability of appointments for patients and consider how to inform patients of other options.
3. Recognise the restrictions of the space available at each site.
4. Ensure that all text messages that contain appointment information include the location for that appointment.
5. Review the information that is available in the waiting rooms/reception areas.
6. Consider how you can consistently keep patients up-to-date on appointments running times.
7. Consider how to keep patients informed in relation to any changes/improvements made as a result of feedback.
8. Consider using the TV screens more regularly.
9. Consider introducing a clock into each waiting room.