GP Registration Review (4th)
Download (PDF 821.74 KB)Summary of report content
Healthwatch Hackney undertook a fourth review of GP practices in relation to patient registration. This review of GP practices focused on three questions: 1. What does the overall registration experience look and feel like for a new patient wanting to register with a GP in Hackney? 2. To what extent is the information consistent across phone enquiries, in person interactions and online GP practices’ websites? 3. What questions in the online registration form might pose a barrier to registration for a new patient, with a particular focus on requests for proof of address and identification?
Findings from mystery shopping and reviews of each GP practice’s website and online registration form showed that:
37% of GP practices (14 out of 38) proactively offered both online and paper options for registration.
58% of practices (22 out of 38) proactively encouraged online registration and offered a paper form only upon request.
68% of GP practices (26 out of 38) did not ask for proof of ID and/or address consistently in all three mystery shopping exercises.
32% of GP practices (12 out of 38) asked for proof of ID and/or address in at least one of three mystery shopping exercises.
Following feedback to practice managers, 2 practices have continued to consistently ask for proof of ID and/or address – these are The Riverside Practice and Well Street Practice.
39% of practices are inconsistent: the information on new patient registration provided on the phone, in person and online does not match.
100% of practices ask the date of entry into the country as a compulsory piece of information for registration. This is a mandatory field in the registration form for all GP practices across England and it is not in the practice’s power to change the form.
5 practices adopt an online registration form that includes barriers to registration, some of them significant. These are one or more of the following: immigration status (refugee, asylum seeker); whether the patient is in education; name of the education’s setting.
The report's recommendations aim to address the barriers and challenges we identified in the GP registration process, ensuring equitable access to primary healthcare services for all prospective patients in Hackney.