Enter and view: Porter Brook Medical Centre

Healthwatch Sheffield carried out an Enter and View visit to Porter Brook Medical Centre, a large GP practice serving around 29,500 patients across two sites, including a substantial student population. Overall, Healthwatch found a professionally managed and well-organised service with positive feedback from both patients and staff. The practice was praised for its responsiveness to patient feedback, strong links with wider NHS developments and an active Patient Participation Group (PPG) that influenced service improvements. 

The practice offered a broad range of services, including asthma and diabetes care, sexual health services, physiotherapy, counselling, occupational health advice, minor surgery, travel health services and psychological therapies. Accessibility was supported through multilingual electronic check-in systems, interpreter services, hearing loops, online booking and extended opening hours, including early morning, evening and Saturday appointments. A dedicated Access Group regularly reviewed patient needs and had introduced changes such as improved triage systems and appointment arrangements in response to feedback.

Healthwatch identified several examples of good practice. The surgery had successfully reduced missed appointments (DNAs) from 10.69% to 5.8% over one year through text reminders, online cancellation options and improved communication with patients. Staff turnover was low, morale appeared positive and the practice's role in training GP registrars, nurses and medical students was viewed as supporting both service quality and recruitment. A recently appointed Community Support Worker was helping patients access wider health, social care and community services. 

Patients and PPG members were generally positive about the quality of care and responsiveness of the practice. Concerns raised included parking availability, variability in consultation experiences and the challenge of ensuring patients whose first language was not English fully understood appointments, medication and healthcare processes. Healthwatch recommended continuing to work closely with the PPG, strengthening collaboration with community organisations, reviewing pharmacy communication about medicines and sharing the practice's successful approach to reducing missed appointments with other GP practices. The report also highlighted concerns about reductions in primary care funding and the potential impact on services for a population with unusually high levels of student registrations and patient turnover.