Patient Participation Groups in Sandwell Review

Healthwatch Sandwell undertook a borough-wide review of Patient Participation Groups (PPGs) between September 2017 and August 2018 to assess patients’ awareness, understanding, and involvement in PPGs across GP practices in Sandwell. The study covered all six Sandwell townships and included visits to 63 GP practices. A total of 1,309 people completed the survey, while a further 175 declined to participate.

PPGs are groups through which patients and GP practice staff work together to discuss services, gather feedback, and identify improvements. Since April 2015, all GP practices in England have been contractually required to establish a PPG and make reasonable efforts to ensure it is representative of their patient population. 

The review found that public awareness and understanding of PPGs were very low. Only 19% of respondents were able to accurately describe what a PPG is, while 81% could not. Many respondents misunderstood the purpose of PPGs, believing they were support groups for specific health conditions or forums for discussing financial matters and benefits rather than mechanisms for influencing GP services. 

Knowledge of whether practices had a PPG was also limited. Only 11% of respondents believed their practice had a PPG, whereas 28% thought their practice did not have one and 61% were unsure. 

The survey found that very few patients had received information about their local PPG. Only 5% reported receiving information, while 86% stated that they had not received any information and 9% were unsure.

Levels of active participation were extremely low. Just 1% of respondents reported being involved in a PPG, while 99% said they were not involved.

The respondents represented a diverse cross-section of Sandwell residents. The largest age group was people aged 25 to 49 years, and the survey included patients, carers, employed and retired individuals, disabled people, and people from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds.

Healthwatch concluded that PPGs were not widely understood or used by patients as a means of engagement with GP practices. The findings raised questions about how effectively PPGs were being promoted and whether they were functioning as meaningful mechanisms for public involvement in primary care. 

As a result, Healthwatch Sandwell recommended that GP practices increase publicity about their PPGs, actively recruit new members, and use a variety of methods to communicate the work and impact of PPGs. It also recommended that Sandwell and West Birmingham Clinical Commissioning Group review how it monitors GP practices’ compliance with PPG requirements and consider whether PPGs remain the most appropriate method for engaging patients in shaping local primary care services. 

Overall, the review found that despite PPGs being a contractual requirement and the principal mechanism for patient engagement in general practice, awareness, communication, and participation across Sandwell were consistently low, indicating a need for stronger patient engagement and promotion of these groups.