Local Patient Participation Report
The Windmill H/c has set up a patient forum to facilitate improvement in our services for our
patients. The Windmill H/C is situated in an area of predominantly Caucasian white working class
population with a higher than average prevalence of COPD, Diabetes and chronic illness.
A patient reference group was established in January
The core group consists of eleven members, one clinician, two members of staff and eight patients.
The eight volunteers were selected from wider group of interested patients to be representative of
our registered population. The volunteers represent a wide range of patients aged from 17 years
through to 79, 3 female, 5 male, patients with chronic illness and others who use our services less
frequently. They represent a mix of different ethnicities.
The group consists of;
A 17 year old Caucasian male student, a disabled Asian mother in her early forties who has two
young children, a Caucasian female in her thirties a mum to teenagers, a retired gentleman in his
late seventies with a chronic illness, a middle aged professional man of Caribbean origin, a middle
aged lady with a dilapidating chronic illness, a middle aged Caucasian man with a chronic illness, a
GP, senior receptionist and the practice manager.
Over thirty other patients expressed an interest in our patient participation group by filling a form at
the desk or via the link on our web site and are being involved by Mail shot & E-mail so a wide range
of views and opinions can be obtained.
All participants involved have volunteered freely and self-selected themselves by picking up a leaflet
at the surgery & completing a form to express their interest. The members of the core group were
invited for their enthusiasm, some having been involved in a patient forum previously and other
others as they and their families use the surgery frequently to meet a variety of needs and have
invaluable experience. They were invited by our previous practice manager and were selected
carefully to represent the range of patients at our surgery.
PRG (patient reference group) met on January 11th to establish issues which were a priority and
include then in a survey
Following introductions, views were taken from the group; there were discussions over access and
disabled parking, the lack of uniform and badges for reception which made the staff appear less
professional & made it harder for patients to refer to member of staff if there were any problems.
The telephone systems and appointment availability including booking in advance & current opening
times made for some debate & a range of opinions were expressed by the members present.
Priority issues decided were;
1. Ease of access to the surgery,
Windmill Health Centre March 2012
2. Appointment availability
3. Times of opening.
The survey was approved by the PRG before sending out to a wider practice population.
The Questionnaire/ Survey included the following;
Patient name & address (this was optional)
Responses were graded from strongly agree to strongly disagree, & I don’t know
Appointments




If I need an urgent appointment I am seen the same day
If I need a non-urgent appointment I am usually seen within one week
If I wish to see a particular Doctor I understand I may have to wait longer
I am happy with the current appointment system
Opening times


The practice is open at times when I can attend an appointment
I am happy with the current opening times.
Our Surgery




The practice is easy to get to
The staff are friendly & approachable
The practice is clean & tidy
Overall I think the practice is welcoming
Clinical care





I feel listened to by the clinical staff
The clinical staff treat me with dignity and respect
The clinical staff communicate their message clearly & effectively
I am confident in the treatment I receive from the clinical staff
I am happy with the clinical care I receive.
Getting involved, this was a Yes / No answer

I would like to know more about how I can become involved in giving my views.
Windmill Health Centre March 2012
Equality monitoring (optional section for patients to fill in)




Sex, disabled, carer
Sexual orientation
Age bracket
Ethnicity
The Local Practice Survey was sent to patients to collate their views
The survey was sent out in the last week in January to those who had expressed an interest but were
not part of the immediate forum & also patients were invited to pick up a survey form from the
reception desk.
Although between 40 -50 forms were collected or posted out we had a low number of returns. Only
20 patients submitted the completed forms.
The forms were handed in at reception or posted back to the surgery and collated by the practice
manager.
Results of survey – see separate insert
The PCG met on March 14th to comment and discuss the findings of the local practice survey.
Those members of the group who were unable to be present and sent their apologies were sent
copies of the results of the survey and invited to comment by phone letter or Email.
The following points were discussed;




The majority of patients were happy with the services offered but it was acknowledged that
the survey returns were lower than expected.
There were comments regarding the opening hours and a couple of patients had requested
Saturday opening but they were pleased with the late and early appointments. At present
due to staffing issues including retirement of a senior partner and resignation of the practice
manager Saturday openings were not an option.
Several patients had expressed dissatisfaction with the telephone lines and difficulty getting
through on occasions, this was debated at the forum & there was discussion of how this
could be improved. In the past there had been issues with the contract with BT but this
needed to be explored again and interim measures were also discussed.
It was pointed out by one of our PRG that as 20 % of the patients didn’t respond to ‘the
practice is open when I can attend’ this could imply a lack of knowledge regarding opening
times and also the information board with doctors details and services regarding the surgery
had been removed some time ago and not replaced.
Windmill Health Centre March 2012

Disabled parking was also an issue as only a small section had a dropped kerb which was
frequently parked on by chemist staff. We need to encourage staff not to park in this area
but another solution would be to remove the bin out-side the entrance to our surgery, put
there by Leeds City Council as it was an eye sore, and is never emptied despite requests
from staff at the windmill (and increases the presence of litter around the surgery) then
drop the kerb allowing easier access for wheelchairs.
Action plan agreed with the forum





Improve car park access for the disabled. To request Leeds City Council removes the bin and
drop the kerb. Remind staff not to park over current access.
Better advertising of our opening hours by putting up an information board with poster of
opening hours and services offered and developing a practice newsletter. Encourage use of
internet appointment booking and discourage repeat prescription requests on the phone.
Review of telephone systems later on in the year when the new practice manager is in post.
Name badges as requested at first PRG meeting are on order.
Repeat the survey next year to include a larger population of the practice & aim for a least
100 returns to be more representative our patients.
The next meeting of the forum is to be held in mid-May to discuss progress of the action plan.
Surgery Opening hours
Monday 08.00 – 18.00
Tuesday 07.00 – 20.30
Wednesday 08.00 – 18.00
Thursday 07.00 – 18.15
Friday 08.00 – 18.00
Early appointments are available from 7am to 8am on Tuesdays and Thursday mornings with a
General Practitioner, late appointments are also available with a General Practitioner from 6.30pm
until 8.30pm on Tuesday evenings.
Windmill Health Centre March 2012