Latest Minutes

October 29th 2024

Matters Arising from Previous Meeting

Automatic Front Door Opening

door opens too quickly, which is a matter of concern for patients with disabilities, e.g. the risk of injury.

Action: Sherry agreed to rectify the problem during the current building works program.

Medical Records

Confirmation that requests by patients for copies of their medical records must be complied with within 28 days in accordance with legislation.

Ear Cleansing

Removal of Ear Wax – the practice has purchased an ear wax removal machine, but will not use it because it is not a contractual requirement. Patients are advised to go to Specsavers which costs £60.00 – unaffordable for many patients.

Action: Advise patients to request a referral to the local ENT service if they have hearing problems – not to Specsavers. PPG will refer matter to the local Neighbourhood to seek agreement to provide this service locally.

Practice Development

Air Conditioners

New air conditioners have now been fixed in the waiting area and will be fixed in all clinical rooms making the practice much safer and a lower risk for vulnerable patients, e.g. reduced risk of infection from Covid and RSV viruses.

Check-In on arrival

Patients will be able to self-check in, or check in with reception staff. The check-in screen will be wheel-chair accessible and will only require patients to provide their name and DoB. Installation expected on the 29/11/2024

Information Screen

An information screen will be installed in the patients waiting area. This screen will tell patients which clinical room to go to for their medical consultation. This system is expected to provide a faster more accessible service for patients. PPG members stated that they did not want adverts placed on the screen. Planned for installation on the 29/11/2024

Other improvements

include more consultation rooms on ground and first floor and a lift. The temperature of the practice waiting areas and consulting room will also be improved and stabilised. There will be a total of 9 consulting rooms including 4 on the first floor.

Recruitment of doctors

Dr Hinton began working at Allerton in October. He will work 2 days each week and was previously a locum at Allerton. The practice hopes to appoint an additional GP in the new year.

Appointment Booking On-Line

Patients will be able to book appointments with GPs and nurses on line. Concern was expressed about the amount of time patients spend waiting on the phone when they call the practice for a GP appointment. Sherry said that the system they use is based on first come first served, i.e. they respond in the order that patients phone in.

Sherry explained that calls can be made to request a GP consultation between 8.30am to 1.30pm. Patients were advised to phone as early in the day as possible.

Computer Literacy

It was agreed that many people do not have the skills to use computers. A computer was placed in the waiting area several years ago to enable patients to train in the waiting area to use the computer for on-line consultations, but was never used. Many patients do not have smart phones and consequently there is an equality bias in the practice towards patients who are computer literate and have mobile phones and therefore can receive messages from the practice.

Action: patient records should highlight patients who are not computer literate and need proactive support to enable them to use the practice computer and submit on-line consultations.

Doctors Call Back

Concern was expressed that when a patient is told that the doctor will call them, that a 4-hour window is given. Questions were put to Sherry about the long wait for the doctor to call them and why texts could not be sent to patients waiting for a call back advising them of delays.

Sherry responded that ‘emergencies happen’ and must be prioritised. She said that sometimes a patient is seriously ill and must be seen urgently and this can delay call-backs. She added that doctors always try again to contact the patient.

Action: Patients should be able to advise admin staff which time would be best for the doctor to call them.

Abuse of Staff

Concern was also raised by Patricia Noel (Reception Manager) about shocking abuse of reception staff, e.g. shouting at them and making racist comments.

Action: Invite Patricia to a future meeting of the PPG to report on abuse of staff, the Practice policy on abuse and the development of an action plan to stop abuse of staff.

Blood Tests

Concern was expressed that whereas blood samples for tests can often be taken the next day at John Scott Health Centre, that it can take several weeks to get an appointment at Allerton for blood taking. This issue was of particular concern to patients who are disabled and find it difficult to get to the JS HC.

Agreed to discuss these concerns with the practice nurse, to ensure that patients with disabilities are flagged on the system as a priority to ensure that they do not suffer any disadvantage as a result of their disability.

Repeat Scripts

Some patients are on class A drugs if they suffer from serious pain. Because of the nature of these drugs the regular repeat scripts system cannot be used. Patients therefore need to contact the practice directly and ask for the script to be processed immediately. Class A drugs should be available within 48 hrs. Patricia Noel said that if the request is put into the practice early in the day the drugs should be available on the same day.

Communicating with Patients

Sending Texts

Concern was expressed about the decision of to stop sending texts to patients about PPG meetings. Sherry explained that this was a decision taken for financial reasons at a high level in the NHS, that affected all GP practices. Agreed to raise this issue with the NEL ICS.

Action: MA to follow up with the ICS

More effective communications with patients

Proposed that communication with patients who have neuro-diverse conditions could be improved by placing prompts on the Allerton texting system. This was agreed as a positive way forward providing patient’s wishes are respected, e.g. those who do not want to receive texts. Patients who do not wish to be texted can be contacted via phone call or email.

Action: Improve communication with patients who have neuro-diverse conditions by placing prompts on the Allerton system

Withheld Numbers

An issue was raised concerning patients receiving Allerton calls from withheld numbers. A request was made for doctors and other staff to use a recognisable number when calling patients. Doctors should log into the Allerton system when they are contacting patients and therefore a withheld number should not be used.

Patients’ Know Best

Patients expressed concern about an organisation called Patients’ Know Best, which is funded by the ICS (Integrated Care System) for North East London to handle patient’ data. Patients may receive messages from this body which are sometimes confusing and have incorrect information, e.g. claiming that Allerton has taken various actions like cancelling appointments that affect patients. The practice may confirm that the action has not taken place. PPG members asked how they could opt out of PKB.

Agreed to make a formal complaint against PKB regarding their dysfunctional system.

Diagnostic Improvements

ECG (Kardia Mobile re stroke)

Patients will be able to have ECGs taken at the Allerton Practice by the practice nurse. Atrial fibrillation (AFib) is an irregular heartbeat that occurs when the upper chambers of your heartbeat out of coordination with the lower chambers, which causes your heart to beat either too slowly or too quickly. It is the most common heart arrhythmia, affecting nearly 1.4 million people in the UK. People with AFib are 5 times more likely to have a stroke and may also develop blood clots, heart failure, and other heart-related complications. If you experience AFib, it may feel like your heart is fluttering or skipping a beat. AFib can be detected on an electrocardiogram (ECG), which records the electrical activity of your heart.

The evidence from 12 studies and a patient survey reported that KardiaMobile was easier to use compared with other ECG monitors. People felt that KardiaMobile would be useful in self-monitoring at home and improving their ability to access the care they needed. Two studies showed that people who used KardiaMobile had a significant improvement in AF-specific quality-of-life scores compared with people in the control groups.

Action: Find out when this new service will be available.

Spirometer - FeNO monitor Fractional Exhaled Nitric Oxide (FeNO)

FeNO devices are a new medical technology designed to assist in the diagnosis of asthma. These devices measure fractional exhaled nitric oxide in a patient's breath. Nitric oxide serves as a biomarker for asthma, indicating the level of inflammation present in the lungs. The result of a FeNO test is a FeNO score, which quantifies the level of inflammation and can be helpful for diagnosing asthma. While FeNO is mainly used for diagnosis, it also has a role in the ongoing monitoring of chronic asthma.

To help patients understand the FeNO testing process, a leaflet has been created that explains what FeNO testing is, its significance, how the test is conducted, and how to prepare for it. It is essential for patients to know what to expect during their FeNO test appointment. The leaflet, titled "Fractional Exhaled Nitric Oxide (FeNO): Your Asthma Inflammation Test Explained," also directs patients to other useful resources. Additionally, there is a FeNO patient video that has been produced in collaboration with Asthma UK, available on their webpage dedicated to tests for diagnosing and monitoring asthma.