Topcliffe Surgery Patient Reference Group
Minutes of Meeting held 17 September 2015 at Topcliffe Surgery
1. Present: Linda Carver, Wendy Jameson (WJ), Derek Jeary, Garry Key (GK),
Jean Ratcliffe, Peter West (PW)
Dr. Rachel Doswell (RD) – GP Partner
David Clarke (DC) – Operations Manager
2. Apologies: Andrew Bell, Ron Bloom, Tracey Brown, Anne Jackson, John Springell,
Ruth Stockdale, Nicola Tyler, Norman Wharton.
3. Minutes of last meeting – matters arising, not covered separately on the agenda:
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Online usage by patients: RD looked into whether it was possible to see how many
patents were actually using the service but it proved technically different to do. DC asked
the group if anyone had used the new patient online access facility and PW said that he
had with no difficulty.
Phlebotomist Suzanne Simpson: staff have been instructed to inform patients that
Suzanne is fully trained.
4. Open for Longer
This was a trial exercise via the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), funded by the
Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund, to provide patients with appointments in the evening
and at weekends. Topcliffe opened on Wednesday evenings but our patients could be
referred to other practices and hospitals during the other out-of-hours times.
The result was that the take up of appointments for our CCG area was poor and not as
good as the rest of the country so the trial here will not be extended. It was felt by the
group that this was a consequence of ours being a rural area and of local practices
generally being well staffed.
5. Action Plan Update
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Sound insulation for Dr. Parker’s Room: Door brushes have been fitted, and music is
played in the waiting room outside. Carpeting was looked at for the waiting room but it
would not comply with the need for the floor to be washable.
Opening hours: see Open for Longer item above.
Car parking: RD contacted the Angel Hotel, who were happy for patients to park at the
far end of their car park. We agreed, however, that it would be unfair to publicise this fact
generally. RD also contacted Broadacres regarding the son and his partner of a
neighbour, who often parked their cars in the surgery car park. RD informed the group
that they had now moved from the area.
6. Next Annual Patient Survey Questionnaire
It was agreed that the next questionnaire would be shorter, have questions placed in a
different order, and would be tailored to the services provided, rather than to individual
performance. Questions would be more general in nature, but would request patients to
give reasons for the acceptability, or otherwise, of that service.
Andrew Bell, via email, suggested that the question regarding waiting time before
appointments should be time-related. However, it was felt by the group that the
acceptability of waiting time was the key issue and that many patients would be unsure
exactly how long they had had to wait.
Action: DC to see if the elements of time and general acceptability could be combined in
the question.
A further question from Andrew asked about the overall service provided by doctors and
nurses, which was exactly in keeping with our intentions.
PW enquired how results obtained from the NHS Survey for our practice compared with
practices elsewhere. DC explained that that should be possible.
Action: DC to publish the results.
Another query concerned how services provided by secondary care, i.e. hospitals, could
be covered. RD replied that a system of “soft intelligence” is in place whereby GPs can
report poor experiences to the CCG, who in term issue reports back to the practices.
7. Staff and Premises News
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Practice Nurses: Mo Bylo, who has been with the surgery for 22 years, retired today and
we all wish her well. Lesley Moore, an experienced hospital and Practice Nurse, joined
us at the beginning of the month.
General Practitioners: Dr. Liz Chappellow will be retiring, and Dr. Sian Gilchrist, our longterm locum, will be leaving at the end of November. Dr. Mike Farrell will be joining us
then, who we are sure will be a great asset to the surgery. Current total GP consulting
hours will be maintained.
Building Reconfiguration: The original plan of extending the Doctors’ Study though the
roof has been dropped as being too expensive and unnecessary. The current thinking is
that the lift will be placed where the patient’s downstairs toilet is situated; the upstairs
waiting room will be knocked through into the Practice Manager's office; and a new
consulting room constructed within that area. Various issues still need to be addressed
but the reconfiguration is planned to be completed by the end of March 2016.
8. Village update – Garry Key
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The Magna Carta event was a great success and enjoyed by all.
A £9,000 grant has been made available for play park equipment and a £1,500 grant
made to the school.
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Hambleton District Council has been given by central government a quota of 300
refugees to house.
9. Primary Care Nursing Workforce
This is a major project driven by the CCG. It entails joint and cross working of Practice
Nurses and Community staff, such as District Nurses and Case Managers. The main
objectives are: to provide equitable care to those patients being treated in their homes
and those treated in GP surgeries; to improve the treatment of long-term conditions and
complicated conditions; and to improve the skills of all nursing staff to be able to deliver
care in different environments. Funds have been made available and a steering group
has been set up to resolve the various issues and get the project running as soon as
possible. The project will run for an initial 18 months trial period.
10. Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB)
The practice has agreed for advisors from the CAB to come into the surgery and be
available for both patients and non-patients. They will have a Wi-Fi enabled iPad and
can dispense leaflets and book longer appointments for clients at their office. Where
possible, a room will be provided to enable some conversations to be held in private. The
sessions are currently planned to take place on Monday mornings, 9.30-12.30, starting
5 October.
11. Christmas and New Year Closing
As Christmas Day and New Year’s Day both fall on Fridays, the surgery will look at
keeping the dispensary open on the preceding Thursday afternoons and providing some
GP cover.
12. A.O.B.
WJ enquired about the future of the Lambert Hospital. The situation is that there is not
enough staff cover to keep it open currently and this is likely to continue for the
foreseeable future.
13. Date of next meeting: March 2016