Patient experiences of accessing GP services
This is despite recent transformational plans for primary care and the latest GP contract which aim to improve primary care services and make it easier for patients to access their GP practice. This feedback suggests inconsistencies in experiences of East Sussex residents, with work required to enable and ensure equitable access.
We have used this insight to produce a headline report which draws together recent experiences of accessing GP services and highlights some of the challenges people face.
Key Findings
Our report identifies the key themes we’ve heard, including:
1. Some patients are not being given a choice of contact methods for requesting an appointment.
We’ve heard from patients whose GP practice is not facilitating the range of contact methods that should be available, with some practices denying patient choice and stipulating that a specific or single method of contact be used.
This contradicts Modern General Practice model (MGP), the Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care, and the GP Patient Charter, You and Your General Practice which outlines the rights of patients to choose the most appropriate method for them.
“Not allowed to phone surgery anymore, told we have to fill out online form, but only a very limited number of forms are released at 8.30am, if you miss one of them then the only option is to try again tomorrow.
2. GP Practices are not always adhering to requirements of the Accessible Information Standard.
We’ve heard from patients where GP practices appear not to be meeting their individual communication needs or making reasonable adjustments, such as providing longer appointments, a quiet space, wheelchair access, or information in a different format, including alternative methods for booking appointments, such as text relay, email, or SMS.
“I am very hard of hearing, so telephone appointments are a problem. Following a text to book an appointment for a review with a nurse I went into the surgery to book it to be told it can only be done on the phone. I feel this is discrimination.”
3. Some patients are being told to call back the next day.
We’ve heard from patients who continue to be told to ‘call back the next day’, which contradicts the You and Your GP guidance that if a patient requests an appointment, the practice must inform them what will happen next within one working day, and the practice should assess what is best for them based on their clinical need e.g. same day appointment, a phone call, signposting to another service.
“I rang to arrange a non-urgent appointment and was told that they only arrange appointments daily, and I would have to try again the following day”
Recommendations
Based on the feedback we’ve received, we have identified several areas where changes could improve the experiences of patients now and in the future, which include:
- Ensuring online, face-to-face and telephone access, is clearly offered to patients at all GP practices
- Simple instructions available on practice websites and at GP practices about how to make an appointment
- Improvements and greater consistency in making reasonable adjustments for patients with specific needs
- Ensuring websites and electronic systems used by GP Practices, are up-to-date, in plain language, and usable by patients
- People with long-term conditions having reviews scheduled proactively in advance, reducing the need to use triage processes for requests for routine checks
Response from NHS Surrey and Sussex
In response to our report, NHS Surrey and Sussex who commission primary care services across Surrey and Sussex, told us:
- our report includes useful feedback that will inform their support for and management of local general practice services with a view to improving patient access and adjustments
- targeted activity is already underway to support GP practices in improving access
- the report will be shared with East Sussex GP practices with a reminder about the contractual requirements regarding patient access and adjustments
Next steps
We will continue to monitor the feedback we receive about GP services, sharing examples and the themes, with both those commissioning services and the providers to raise awareness of the experiences of patients.
We will share this report with NHS England, the Care Quality Commission, and Healthwatch England and others to share this insight and support future service development.
Share Your Feedback
If you would like to tell us about your experience of NHS and/or social care services, be it good or bad, please contact us via our Feedback Centre or our I&S Service via enquiries@healthwatcheastsussex.co.uk or 0333 101 4007 (Monday – Friday, 10am – 2pm).
