Enter and view: New Medical Centre

Healthwatch Havering conducted an announced enter and view visit to New Medical Centre, on 10th July 2017, as part of their aim to visit all health and social care facilities in the borough, to ensure that all services delivered are acceptable and the safety of the residents is not compromised in any way.

HWH found the general appearance of the practice a littler ‘tired’ but were informed that an extension was planned for the near future, which will enable the décor to be refreshed. The team found the reception to be adequate and the staff friendly and helpful. There was an electronic check in system, and hand sanitizers available on the reception desk, and in the toilet. A hearing loop was provided, and a translation service was available. The reception area was busy, and not

Appointments can be booked online or through the phone and telephone consultations are also available at other times. A complaints box is available which can be discussed at meetings. The PPG at the surgery are excellent and very proactive and were commended by HW for their services.

The team were told that the surgery apparently has the oldest population in the whole of England.

The report details other services provided by the surgery such as nurses’ clinics, specific GP for patients with Dementia, and a new project called “The Glass Project” for Dementia and frailty register which involved several professionals participating in a Skype conference call to consult and discuss the patient’s condition. HW team were told that the process in obtaining records of new patients was very poor and getting appointments at Queen’s hospital was very difficult. The team was able to speak only with one patient, who told them that

he had had to wait 20 minutes to get through when phoning for an

appointment.

Overall, the team felt that this appeared to be a very patient-focused, innovative practice.

Recommendations made by HW were:

To continue to ease the situation with new patients’ notes; pressure be applied to Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust to improve the procedure for obtaining appointments at BHRUT; the process for telephone contact with the Centre be reviewed to ensure that patients are not left waiting for an answer for excessive periods; the time lost to DNAs be publicised, as well as the cost, to maximise patient impact and encourage changed behaviour, with emphasis on the ability to cancel unwanted appointments online and (when available) the fact that reminders can be sent by text; and the effective work done with the PPG continue and be further developed.

The report does not include a response from the provider.