GP practices in Eastern Cheshire are in the top eight per cent in England, according to the findings of a national patient satisfaction survey.
The 2017-18 GP Patient Survey ranked NHS Eastern Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group 17th out of 203 CCGs, with 88 per cent of patients rating their experience of general practice as ‘good’ or ‘very good’, which is four per cent above the national average.
Only three per cent of patients not taking an appointment offered by their GP then visited A&E, which is much lower than the national average of 11 per cent.
This suggests that very few Eastern Cheshire people are visiting A&E unnecessarily, and that they are either adopting self-care or using other services such as the NHS website at www.nhs.uk, their community pharmacy or NHS 111.
The findings underline the value of the CCG’s work, and that of its partners, to encourage wise use of NHS services to reduce avoidable demand on urgent and emergency care.
Examples include the annual ‘Stay Well This Winter’ campaign.
Eighty four per cent of patients said they had enough support from local services to help manage their ongoing conditions, which is five per cent higher than the national average.
The GP Patient Survey was significantly redeveloped for 2018 to reflect changes in primary care services.
This, combined with the inclusion of 16 and 17 year olds, means comparisons with previous years’ results are not entirely reliable.
However, they are still an important indicator of GP performance and satisfaction.
Dr Paul Bowen, clinical chair of the CCG and GP with McIlvride Medical Practice, Poynton stressed the benefits of the survey: “The GP Patient Survey offers general practice an invaluable insight into patient satisfaction.
“By identifying good practice, the survey enhances team morale and encourages further innovation.
“Where patient satisfaction is lower, the survey highlights opportunities for improvement.
“Here in Eastern Cheshire, patient satisfaction is consistently high in line with the Care Quality Commission ratings of all 22 practices as being good or outstanding.”
The full set of results for the questionnaire can be found at gp-patient.co.uk, while a summary of key questions and responses is presented in the table below:
| Question | NHS ECCCG | National | Comparison |
| Were you satisfied with the type of appointment (or appointments) you were offered? | 97% | 94% | 3% above |
| Overall, how would you describe your experience of making an appointment? | 74% good | 69% | 5% above |
| How long after your appointment time did you wait to see or speak to a healthcare professional? | 68% > 15min | 69% > 15min | 1% below |
| Last time you had a general practice appointment, how good was the healthcare professional at giving you enough time? | 90% Yes | 87% Yes | 3% above |
| During your last general practice appointment, were you involved as much as you wanted to be in decisions about your care and treatment? | 95% Yes | 93% Yes | 2% above |
| During your last general practice appointment, did you have confidence and trust in the healthcare professional you saw or spoke to? | 97% Yes | 96% Yes | 1% above |
| Overall, how would you describe your experience of your GP practice | 88% good | 84% good | 4% above |
| In the last 12 months, have you had enough support from local services or organisations to help you to manage your condition (or conditions)? | 84% Yes | 79% Yes | 5% above |
| Overall, how would you describe your last experience of NHS services when you wanted to see a GP but your GP practice was closed? | 72% Good | 69% Good | 3% above |
