Patient-friendly Practice Award

The Patient-friendly Practice Award is the first of its kind as far as we know. It’s designed by patients, not professionals and the criteria practices must meet came from a consultation event attended by Healthwatch members, people from local communities, colleagues from St Helens Clinical Commissioning Group and partners from local 3rd sector organisations.

 What the Award is:

• Focused on what it feels like to be a patient at your practice, rather than the range of services your practice provides
• A reward for practices that make their patients feel valued as individuals, with individual needs
• Recognition of going the extra mile for patients
• Recognition of what practices are doing but patients might not be aware of

 What the Award isn’t:

• A reward for offering a range of services e.g. blood tests, minor surgery
• A measure of facilities, such as a car park and onsite pharmacy

 To apply for the Award, Practice Managers should contact the Healthwatch team on 0300 111 00007 or by emailing: [email protected]

 If you think your practice deserves to be recognise as a patient-friendly practice, why don’t you let us know and we can contact the Practice Manager with details of how to apply?

Practice The Spinney 23 Whittle St, Saint Helens, WA10 3EB

Practice Manager Katie Power

Date of submission 13th June, 2016

Date awarded 4 th July, 2016

The Spinney was the first practice to apply for the Award and agreed to pilot the process.

Submission

The evidence booklet contained plenty of evidence, with links to the website for further information. Additional information was included which outlined policies that the practice adheres to. One of the policy documents still referred to the PCT rather than CCG and the practice will now amend.

Where criteria wasn’t yet fully being met, an explanation was offered regarding progress. For example, the practice does not have a familyfriendly area, however multi-sensory toys have been purchased and plans have been made for a refresh of the waiting room.

The submission document outlines the work of the Patient Participation Group including their support to design and deliver education days, the Care for Carers policy and one member in particular’s contribution to providing clear and informative notice boards.

The practice has purchased a queuing system which enable the lines to be kept clear for incoming calls while enabling staff to check whether prescriptions are ready when patients call to enquire.

Staff are trained in conflict resolution and are encouraged to resolve issues quickly. In cases where this is not possible the NHS Complaints Policy is followed.

The practice always responds to patient feedback on NHS Choices. The Care for Carers policy is a good example of how the practice goes the extra mile for patients.

The assessing team considered it to be a very thorough submission and agreed it met all criteria required for the paper based side of the submission.

Enter & View

The Enter & View team were made welcome by all staff and asked to sign in the Visitors book. Although not part of the criteria, the team commented that the waiting room is clean and uncluttered. A ‘Who’s who’ board in reception offers a friendly feel.

A member of the assessing team queried why the practice does not issue complaints forms. Practice Manager, Katie Power took the opportunity during the visit to explain how she has introduced a robust system where all staff take ownership of concerns raise by patients. Instead of handing out a form, staff deal with concerns face-to-face, which means that few of them actually need to become complaints.

In the case of supporting breastfeeding mothers, the practice does not have available space to offer a designated area, however there is a clear sign on the waiting room wall stating that the practice will make every effort to support breastfeeding mothers wherever possible, on request.

A member of the assessing team queried why the practice does not issue complaints forms. Practice Manager, Katie Power took the opportunity during the visit to explain how she has introduced a robust system where all staff take ownership of concerns raise by patients. Instead of handing out a form, staff deal with concerns face-to-face, which means that few of them actually need to become complaints. In the case of supporting breastfeeding mothers, the practice does not have available space to offer a designated area, however there is a clear sign on the waiting room wall stating that the practice will make every effort to support breastfeeding mothers wherever possible, on request.

Summary

Katie Power was very accommodating and forthcoming with information about the practice.

Overall, the application for the award from the Spinney was excellent and the Enter & View visit only reiterated what the paper submission outlined.

The submission was signed off by Tom Hughes, Healthwatch Chair on Tuesday 5 th July, 2016.

Congratulation to all at the Spinney for being the first practice in St Helens to achieve the Patient-friendly Practice Award.

Acknowledgements

Assessing team

Geoff Almond (Patient-friendly practice steering group) 
Mary Ratcliffe (Patient-friendly practice steering group) 
Steve Whitehouse (Patient-friendly practice steering group)
Jayne Parkinson (Healthwatch St Helens Support team)

Enter & View Team

Pam Davies (Enter & View authorised representative) 
Judi Lunt (Enter & View authorised representative) 
Jayne Parkinson (Healthwatch St Helens Support team)

Healthwatch St Helens would like to thank the staff at The Spinney for their time and the warm welcome they gave us

Practice Kenneth MacRae Medical Centre 32 Church Street, Saint Helens, WA11 8HJ 

Practice Manager Michelle Anderton 

Date of submission 26th August, 2016 

Date awarded 2nd November, 2016

There was a two-month gap between the initial submission and the Enter & View visit taking place. This was negotiated between the practice and Healthwatch to accommodate staff and volunteer holidays and other commitments for both parties. 

Submission

The evidence booklet contained plenty of evidence, with links to the website for further information.

Where ‘desirable’ criteria wasn’t met, an explanation was offered. For example, staff do not undergo training in conflict resolution as part of their annual mandatory training but this is being considered for the future.

The submission includes information about the PPG, which has been running since 2009. Minutes are distributed to all members and the date and time of the next meeting are agreed at the close of each meeting.

The PPG is always consulted about changes within the practice such as electronic prescribing and input into the website. The Chair of the PPG is currently involved with work both locally and nationally around an unequal funding issue that the group felt strongly about.

The practice codes patients who have additional needs, including carers and they will offer flexible appointment times. While the practice does not have anyone trained as a dementia friend, staff are trained in dementia awareness and they have a carers’ champion. Mothers wishing to breastfeed are given access to a private room.

The assessing team considered it to be a very thorough submission and agreed it met all criteria required for the paper based side of the submission. 

Enter & View 

The Enter & View team were made welcome by all staff and asked to sign in the Visitors book. The waiting area is welcoming and homey with furniture and curtains that offer a very non-clinical feel. There are noticeboards containing information about the practice, carers’ issues and details of the Patient Participation Group.

A comprehensive practice information leaflet is available in the Reception area as well as a monthly newsletter that keeps patients informed but also encourages them to make responsible choices about their health and the treatment they seek.

We witnessed a GP coming out to collect her patients from the waiting room and were told that this is standard practise. There is a childfriendly area with books and toys and a sign that invites children to draw pictures and put them on the wall.

The Practice Manager, Michelle Anderton was very accommodating and spent time telling the visiting team about the practice and its history. She described a very patient-focused approach with a flexible appointment system including an open surgery on Monday mornings that usually accommodates around 35 patients. The practice has two permanent GPs, with one specialising in palliative care, who often goes to patient’s home to comfort them and their families as they approach the end of their life.

We were given a stack of ‘Thank you’ cards to look at and we noted that most of them referred to the GPs by their first names, which we thought was a very personal touch and reflected the friendly feel of the practice in general.

A member of the assessing team enquired as to why the practice was not often represented at the CCG’s PPG forum. We were told that they had found the forums to sometimes be ‘hit and miss’ in the past but they receive the minutes and keep up to date with what is being discussed.

The visiting team observed that the signage on the road outside the practice gives directions to a medical centre but does not include its name and felt this could be potentially confusing for people who are new to the area. Michelle explained that that was all that was permitted to be on the sign and it could not be personalised in any way. The PPG had to fight to have the sign put up in the first place after an ambulance crew did not realise it was a medical centre and drove straight past. We felt that it was important to recognise this as an example of the PPG’s commitment to improving the practice.

Summary

Overall, the application for the award from the Kenneth MacRae Medical Centre was excellent. The Enter & View visit enabled the practice to demonstrate aspects that could not be fully expressed in the paper submission.

Michelle Anderton was very accommodating and forthcoming with information about the practice and all staff we encountered were welcoming.

The submission was signed off by Tom Hughes, Healthwatch Chair on Tuesday 6 th December, 2016.

Congratulation to the Kenneth MacRae Medical Centre for achieving the Healthwatch St Helens Patient-friendly Practice Award.

Acknowledgements Assessing Team

Geoff Almond (Patient-friendly practice steering group)
Mary Ratcliffe (Patient-friendly practice steering group) 
Jayne Parkinson (Healthwatch St Helens Support team)

Enter & View Team 

Pam Davies (Enter & View authorised representative) 
Judi Lunt (Enter & View authorised representative) 
Jayne Parkinson (Healthwatch St Helens Support team)

Healthwatch St Helens would like to thank the staff at the practice for their time and the warm welcome they gave us.

Practice: Garswood Surgery, Billinge Road, Ashton-in-Makerfield, WN4 0XD

 Practice Manager: Sharon Greenwood

 Date Of Submission: 3rd May, 2017

 Date Awarded: 13th June, 2017

 Submission

 The evidence booklet contained plenty of evidence, with links to the website, which the assessing team noted was clear and easy to navigate.

 The submission includes information about the PPG, which meets twice a year, is advertised in the surgery, on the website and in patient leaflets. Minutes of meetings are available on the website.

 Staff have undertaken Blue Stream Academy training and several staff have GNVQs in customer service training with further staff working towards it. The submission quotes feedback from the National GP Patient Survey with ‘Helpful receptionists’ scoring 94%, which is 7% higher than the national average.

 The practice has a Dementia Friend, a PPG member is a Dementia Friend trainer and the practice manager has undergone Dementia Friend training. There is a dedicated carers noticeboard in the waiting room and the practice routinely signposts to the Carers Centre. The paper submission contains details of further measures the practice takes to meets patients’ additional needs.

 The assessing team considered it to be a very thorough submission and agreed it met all criteria required for the paper based side of the submission. The visiting team noted that the opening times were not displayed in the waiting room, however the practice manager, Sharon Greenwood explained that this is temporary while practice staff are refreshing the displays. It is also important to note that the opening times are included in the patient leaflet which is readily available.

Enter & View

 The Enter & View team found the receptionist to be friendly, approachable and helpful. There was a self-check-in system which the team observed an older patient using, apparently without any difficulty. Sharon told the team that, in general patients find the system easy to use.

 The noticeboard at the practice contains information about NHS services, health concerns, repeat prescriptions and community services leaflets. The visiting team suggest that posters and leaflets in the waiting room could be tidied and streamlined and the practice manager informed us that this is done regularly to ensure the information on display is clear and easy to read.

 Summary

Overall, the application for the award from Garswood Surgery was excellent. The Enter & View visit enabled the practice to demonstrate aspects that could not be fully expressed in the paper submission.

The assessing team noted that this is a very community-focused surgery which organises a number of activities such as bake sales for Macmillan. They also offer a safe haven for victims of domestic violence and have signed the ‘No Place for Hate’ pledge.

We also wanted to note that the work of the PPG on campaigning for the waiting room to be more conducive to confidentiality as well as encouraging the practice to be more family friendly demonstrates its support for the practice to go the extra mile for its patients.

Acknowledgements:

Assessing Team:

• Joan Young (Patient-friendly practice steering group)
• Mary Ratcliffe (Patient-friendly practice steering group)
• Jayne Parkinson-Loftus (Healthwatch St Helens Support team)

 Enter & View Team:

• Joanne Welsby (Enter & View authorised representative)
• Janet Roberts (Healthwatch St Helens Support team)

 Healthwatch St Helens would like to thank the staff at the practice for their time and the warm welcome they gave us.