Slaidburn Health Centre Patient Engagement Day

The report presents findings from a Healthwatch Lancashire Patient Engagement Day carried out at Slaidburn Health Centre in November and December 2016. Feedback was gathered from 21 patients to understand their experiences of access, quality of care, and involvement in the service. 

Overall, patients reported very positive experiences of the health centre. The practice was described as clean, well-organised, and friendly, with staff who knew patients personally and created a welcoming, community-focused atmosphere. 

In terms of access, all patients booked appointments by telephone, and none used the online booking system, largely because they did not want to or did not use computers. However, patients generally found it easy to access care, with the vast majority reporting no difficulties in obtaining urgent same-day or routine appointments. Most patients rated the appointment booking process as excellent, and all found the opening hours convenient. 

The quality of care was rated extremely highly. Nearly all patients were happy with the staff, and all respondents said they felt listened to during appointments, found the information provided helpful, and were very satisfied with the overall care they received. 

Patient involvement was more limited. Just under half of respondents were aware of the Patient Participation Group, and most were not interested in joining it. This lack of awareness was identified as an area for improvement by the provider.