Patient Participation Group (PPG)

About the Patient Participation Group

Patients are occasionally contacted by email and invited to take part in various activities e.g. Patient Surveys. If you would like to sign up, you can either complete our online registration form, or you can fill in a request form available from the front desk in Reception.

Become a PPG member

Whilst feedback from all surveys including the National Surveys, has always been very positive, we do not take our patient’s good wishes and support lightly. We are very keen to solicit feedback from our patients in as many forms as we can. A phone call or a word at the front desk is just as welcome!

We also hold regular Patient Participation Group (PPG) meetings to which all patients are invited.

If you would like to attend, please let reception know or just come along on the night. Everyone is welcome.

Latest Patient Participation Group Meeting Minutes

• Date: Tuesday 17th December 2024
• Time: 6:30pm
• At: Eastfield House Surgery

Present

• Mark Galliver, GP Partner
• Liz Pope, Practice Manager
• Tania Coker-Davies, Operations Manager
• Kathy Sandell, Social Prescriber
• Tania Hart, Reception Manager
• Jo Booth, Reception Manager
• 8 x patients attended.

Welcome and introductions

Liz Pope thanked everyone for coming, it was lovely to see some familiar faces and new ones too. It is lovely to be able to meet at our newly decorated waiting area. 

Staff update

Anita has retired from her position at Receptionist. She has plans to travel, but she will be back in the summer and provide holiday and sickness cover for reception team. 

Tania, our current Reception Manager is also retiring early to spend more time with her family and to travel. We would like to wish them both the very best of luck for the future and their travels. 

Jo joined our Reception Team in March 2024 and is taking over the role of Reception Manager week commencing 23rd December.  

We have managed to successfully recruit two new members to our Reception Team - Michelle, who will be joining us on 30th December and Louise will be joining is February 2025. 

Renee will be joining our Secretarial team on 30th December. The secretarial team will then be made of 5 team members. Renee has been working as a medical administrator at a different GP practice and has recently moved into the area. 

Chaanah and Ellie joined our Pharmacy Team in 2024. Chaanah is a Pharmacy Technician who has spent the last 20+ years working in a community pharmacy and will now start training in General Practice. 

Ellie is our Prescription clerk who joined us as a temporary position when she finished university. She processes prescription requests and monitors medication supply queries, linking with the community pharmacies. She will be leaving us in February 2025 to go travelling.  

New Premises

The planning application for the new premises was submitted to West Berkshire Planning in October 2023 with submission of the full application in December 2023. Applications usually take up to 12 weeks before a decision is made. However, West Berkshire Planning are notoriously slow when dealing with applications and a final decision will be made on 22nd January 2025. 

The West Berkshire Health Scrutiny Committee visited the practice in November and have recognised that our current building is too small for our patients and staff, and commended us on the steps we have made in utilising the existing space so efficiently. However, their concern is for patients who are currently able to walk to the surgery who will need to use transport to get to the new site. 

The practice has addressed their concerns by highlighted the existing bus routes that already travel to the Newbury college and the development that his happening on the Sandleford site and surrounding areas Transport links have already been considered as part of that development. In addition, the Volunteer Centre offer transport to patients at a much cheaper rate than a taxi and Bernie Prizeman, who is the Service Manager of the Volunteer Centre will come and speak to our patients at our next PPG. 

We recently had a visit from our local MP, Lee Dillon. He was very sympathetic towards our cause and will liaise with West Berkshire Planning with regard to the progress of our application. 

When planning has been approved, Eastfield House will submit a Business Case to our Integrated Care Board (ICB) for funding of rent. Our ICB have informed us that we will be competing for funding with other surgeries in Berkshire, Oxford and Buckinghamshire, but we are seen as a priority.  Greenham Trust have been very supportive, reiterating that they are not in the market to make profit like commercial companies, they are a charity who reinvest any profits made, back into the community. 

Greenham Trust will be the developer of the new premises. If the Business Case is approved, Greenham Trust anticipate 18 months to construct the new premises. Currently the plans and drawings are being displayed in our surgery’s waiting room for all other patients who haven’t had the opportunity to join us in the engagement evening see.

Healthwatch – Simon Shaw

Simon Shaw Senior Engagement Officer for the Healthwatch reading attended the PPG Meeting today. He explained that Heatlhwatch there to understand the needs of people who use health and social care services. They act as a voice for  to champion the needs of people and welcome feedback from patients. Simon shared his contact details for any patients who want to contact Healthwatch.

NHS App / Anima/ IT Support – Rav Gopal, Digital Services Officer - Newbury Library

Just a reminder to patients that Rav Gopel, a volunteer at Newbury library, is offering support to our patients, with installing and navigating the NHS App for our patients. Posters are displayed in the surgery with about his service. He can be contacted via email to arrange a 30 to 60 minute 1:1 appointment.

Healthwatch – Simon Shaw

Simon Shaw Senior Engagement Officer for the Healthwatch reading will be attending our next PPG meeting on 10th September. He will be explaining a little bit about the Healthwatch and what they can offer and do for patients. 

NHS App / Anima/ IT Support – Rav Gopal, Digital Services Officer - Newbury Library

Just a reminder to patients that Rav Gopel, a volunteer at Newbury library, is offering support to our patients, with installing and navigating the NHS App for our patients. Posters are displayed in the surgery with about his service and he can be contacted online here to arrange a 30 to 60 minute 1:1 appointment.

West Berkshire Patient Panel Meetings

Tim Benson, PPG Chair sent his apologies as he was unable to attend the meeting. We will have to wait for an update from him on our next meeting. 

Patient Questions and Suggestions

NHS App shows test results; many patients are unaware of this. 

Yes, some tests results will appear on your NHS App after being reviewed by the GP. We have published information on our website and Facebook page, but it seems not all patients are aware of the benefits that the NHS App can offer. We will be looking at what other ways we can spread the word so that more patients can benefit from all the NHS App features.

What kind of assistance is available for patients finding hard to use Anima and the NHS App?

Receptionists can always assist to put requests through for anyone who feels, for whatever reason, that they are unable to do so themselves. This can be done over the telephone, or we also have a privacy room adjacent to reception which can be used if a patient walks in to the surgery and would like to make the request in person in a private room. The receptionists can also assist with this. 

For those patients who need a paper form we have printed copies in reception and our receptionists can provide patients with the forms and hand over to the GP triaging on the day and they will triage this as all the other calls. These forms will be dealt with the same form of urgency as the requests submitted online. 

Transport to the new premises, what are the arrangements?

There is quite frequent public transport to Newbury college, which is at the back of the new site. There is also very frequent public transport to the Retail park and Tesco superstore. In addition, there is a volunteer group for transport – Volunteer Centre West Berkshire (VCWB) which can be booked in by patients for a small fee. They will be coming along to our next PPG meeting to talk to patients and answer any questions that they may have. 

DNA (Did Not Attend) Appointments

One of the patients asked about the levels of our DNA appointments, and how many appointments are wasted due to patients not turning up. Liz explained that one of our Nurses has been looking at the DNA rates for the nursing team as they seem to be the ones who patients DNA the most. Since looking at this we have made some changes as a practice, like identifying that the higher rate of patients and appointment types that are not attended. We have reviewed our processes to maximise the time wasted through missed appointments. We have also been promoting the usage of the “Check and Cancel” option on our phone system which allows patients to dial in the practice main number, and after choosing option 1 check what appointments they have booked and cancel any if needs be. 

Date of Next Meeting

• Tuesday 25th February 2025 at 6:30pm.