Enter and view: Brownlow Practice

Healthwatch Liverpool carried out an unannounced Enter and View visit to the Brownlow Group Practice at Pembroke Place on 25 July 2013. The visit was a fact-finding exercise with a particular focus on services for homeless and vulnerable patients, while also considering previous patient feedback. They spoke to 9 patients.

Overall, the practice was viewed positively. The premises were found to be clean, well maintained, accessible, and welcoming. Reception and waiting areas were described as light and airy, and treatment rooms and toilet facilities were considered clean and accessible. 

The main concerns related to accessibility. Parking was difficult because of the city-centre location, particularly for disabled patients. The visitors noted that the reception queue barrier and the arrangement of some waiting-room chairs reduced space for wheelchair and scooter users.

Patient feedback was largely positive. Nine patients were spoken to during the visit, with most giving very high ratings for staff attitude, dignity and respect, cleanliness, accessibility of information, and equality and diversity. Patients generally reported that staff were helpful and caring. However, some patients expressed concerns about parking and the appointment system. A few commented that it was not possible to book a same-day appointment by telephone and that attendance at the walk-in service was sometimes required.

The report highlighted the scale and diversity of Brownlow Health's services. The organisation operated across four sites and served around 28,000 patients, including a large student population and many homeless or vulnerable individuals. The practice offered specialist services for homeless patients, including a dedicated weekly drop-in clinic, support from drug and alcohol services, outreach nurses, and a waiting-room mentor employed through the Whitechapel Centre. Healthwatch regarded these services as a significant strength of the practice. 

The practice also demonstrated a strong commitment to accessibility and inclusion. Information could be provided in different languages, interpreters were used where necessary, and targeted work was undertaken to engage international students, particularly Chinese students who might have concerns about confidentiality.

Healthwatch made five key recommendations. These were to improve disabled parking provision, reposition the reception queue barrier to improve wheelchair access, reconfigure some waiting-room seating to create more space, explore introducing timed same-day appointments alongside the existing walk-in system, and maintain the valuable waiting-room mentor role supporting homeless and vulnerable patients.

No safeguarding concerns were identified during the visit.