JHS Patient Participation Group

The Patients’ Voice

Nine patients form a patients group committee.  We try to collect feedback from fellow patients and represent patients’ views to the surgery.  We meet roughly every 6 weeks, including four meetings with one of the GPs and the practice manager.  The minutes of these meetings are placed on the surgery website (under ‘PPG News’) and a summary is put on the PPG’s noticeboard in the surgery waiting room.

So, if you’ve got any ideas about how the surgery might do something different or better, please get in touch by emailing us on jhs.patients.group@nhs.net. You can also leave a note marked “for PPG” at the surgery reception. We will not pass on your name to the surgery unless you ask us to.

There are two other ways patients can get involved:

• you can join our email list of patients we contact once or twice a year for views on particular surgery issues.  This includes our annual patients’ survey
• you can join our committee and take part in our discussions which cover things like the changes to surgery services, how to collect patient feedback, improving the surgery website, addressing issues raised by patients, the implications of the changing face of primary care, and surgery priorities for spending money raised by patients.

Contact us on jhs.patients.group@nhs.net if you are interested in either.

We write articles for each edition of the surgery's quarterly newsletter and produce a short annual report listing what we have done over the past 12 months (see 'PPG News').  We worked with the surgery to produce a one-page summary of what patients can expect from the surgery and what the surgery expects from patients - see Surgery Service Levels ​.

Mike, Chris, Jackie, Bob,

Ann, Sue, John, Nick and Barry

Other News

Our Patient Group have worked with us to develop an article which outlines some advice about what patients can expect from the surgery and in turn what the surgery expects from our patients. We hope this information is helpful and provides useful guidance.

please see attached link: Surgery Service Levels

Mike Etkind (chair)

Mike took over as chair in May 2016.  He first came to live in Prestwood in 1999 and then moved to Little Kingshill.  He is married to Sally and they have 4 married children and 4 grandchildren.  Before retiring at the end of 2015, Mike worked as a civil servant, mainly dealing with environmental policy.  He says he joined the PPG “to keep myself occupied and out of mischief”.  He sees the PPG not only as a way of helping the surgery get feedback from the patients it serves and being a critical friend, but also as an opportunity to support the surgery and ideally establish a community of patients who can support one another.

 Jackie Bailey (secretary)

Jackie has been a patient at the surgery for over 20 years and a member of the patient committee for over 5 years. Jackie sustained a spinal cord injury at the age of 17 and has been a full time wheelchair user since then. She lives with her husband and youngest son next door to her mum and dad in Cryers Hill. In the past she has worked as Peer Support for both the Spinal Injuries Association and the National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital and continues to be involved there as a volunteer in trying to improve patient experiences. 

 Christine Jarvis (deputy treasurer)

Chris is a retired member of the surgery staff and a patient at the practice. She joined the team in 1978 and covered roles as a receptionist, medical secretary and practice manager. She has witnessed the many changes which have taken place in the NHS over this time. She believes in the importance of the caring ethos of our surgery and wishes to see this attitude continued and enhanced in the future. She is a founder member of John Hampden Patients' Group, which has now evolved into the PPG.

Bob Cox

Bob arrived in Prestwood back in 1982 as he progressed his career in Sales and Marketing in the Pharmaceutical Industry, specialising in vaccines.  His two boys were then aged 11 and 9 years. They chose Bucks for grammar school education and fortunately both ended up at Aylesbury Grammar, before moving on to university.  He is a true “Geordie” born and bred on the north bank of the river Tyne and a Newcastle United supporter. His main sporting interest is F1 motor racing.

Both boys and his wife, who is from Edinburgh, work in the Healthcare Industry at board level, but he is now retired.  Family wise they are well travelled around the globe and travel is their hobby.

Anne Ballard

Anne trained as a psychologist and worked for many years as a business analyst in the pharmaceutical industry, finally creating her own management consultancy. On retiring early in 1998 Anne ‘went back to school’ and spent three years studying for a degree in English Language and Literature at Oxford, which she found both very hard work and extraordinarily enjoyable. Anne and her husband, Peter, have lived in Great Missenden since 1972 and have been patients at JHS ever since then. She has twin daughters and three grandchildren.

Sue Scott

Sue is relatively new to the practice, having moved to Prestwood in 2016.  She moved here following the death of her husband so as to be closer to her family.  Sue is a retired GP having practised in North Worcestershire for 30 years.  Her own practice was small and friendly, very like The John Hampden Surgery, which is why she joined this practice as a patient.  It is interesting to be on the other side of the fence.

John Deakin

John is a chartered accountant. He is now retired but spent much of his career specialising in oil tax with a major US company. After retirement he obtained an OU degree in History of Science, Technology and Medicine.  He has lived in Prestwood since 1979 and he and his wife Margaret (who died in 2017) immediately became patients of Drs McKelvie and Jenkins at JHS.  John is Treasurer of Prestwood Methodist Church. He enjoys gentle walking - especially in the Yorkshire Dales - and 6 grandchildren (aged between 11 and 21) also help to keep him alert.

Barry Cope

Barry has been a patient for over 10 years and is a type 1 insulin dependent diabetic and therefore relies on the surgery to run effectively to support him in his day to day pressures of having diabetes. Barry uses an insulin pump and continuous glucose monitoring which he is more than happy to discuss with anyone that will listen!

Barry, who trained as an engineer, is the General Manager of two accreditation schemes and a trade association in the construction industry and therefore is a specialist in processes, auditing, training and efficiency (all of which are skills that can be translated into a GP practice environment).  Barry has supported the surgery behind the scenes (particularly with IT and DIY!) and recently joined the patient group in order to support the ongoing development of the surgery. 

Nick Talliotis is also a member of the committee. 

Dr Mallard-Smith and Laura Russell (practice manager) attend four meetings a year.

                Mike                             Jackie                      Chris

           Bob                          Ann                              Sue

         John                      Barry

Patient Group Five Year Review Survey 2021

The PPG have now completed a five year review and the report can be found below, these results have been shared and discussed with the practice.

Please find below a link the Annual Survey findings.JHS PPG 5 Year Review

Notes from online PPG meeting Friday 9^th July 2021

Attending: Mike Etkind, Bob Cox, Barry Cope, Dr Mallard-Smith, Laura Russell (practice manager)

Apologies: Anne Ballard, John Deakin, Chris Jarvis, Jackie Walker

• Recovery from lockdown – there is due to be some comms soon from the Clinical Commissioning Group. As things stand, the surgery proposes to continue with the current arrangements for making appointments and handling consultations, including the balance of face-to-face and remote consultations. The situation will be kept under review. The surgery is conscious that it would only take one Covid infection to close the surgery and therefore does not at present want to revert to hand-delivery of prescriptions or to numbers of patients waiting together in the waiting room. Mike suggested explaining this on the surgery website. The surgery is up-to-date with long term condition reviews and all other activities, with the exception of blood tests where the wait for routine blood tests is now about 4 weeks. However, if the GPs decide a blood test is urgent, they will send patients to one of the three local hospitals to have it done there without a wait. There are significant issues regarding referrals to outpatients appointments or elective surgery: the NHS Trust is expected to be issuing guidance in the next 7-10 days. Mike agreed to draft some words about these issues for the surgery to consider for the website. Laura to send Mike the NHS Trust guidance when she receives it.

• PPG report of last two years’ activity – those at the meeting were happy with the report and for it to be put on the surgery website.

• 2021 PPG survey of patients – it was agreed that this should largely cover the same issues as last year, ie views on the different appointment options. Mike to draft survey.

1.  
2. Increasing diversity of the PPG – it was agreed that it would be better if the PPG committee had a more diverse membership, including more patients of working age. GPs to discuss ways they might identify patients who would be potential committee members.
3.  

• Primary Care Network news – a new care coordinator and a PCN manager will be starting at the end of July. There have been more staff changes among the social prescribers.

• Other current or expected surgery news – the surgery is waiting for further guidance regarding the roll-out of the winter flu vaccine and any parallel Covid top-up jabs. Mike asked whether volunteers might be needed to help with the vaccination events: Dr Mallard-Smith said help with marshalling might be welcome and the surgery would consider when it was clearer what the arrangements would be and get back - probably during August. A Care Quality Commission inspection is no longer expected for the time being: CQC policy has changed to prioritising surgeries where they obtain data that suggests there may be problems. Dr Mallard-Smith advised that the surgery’s patient list had grown by about 300 in the past 18 or fewer months (up from ~3,500 to 3,800). The surgery is speaking to the Clinical Commissioning Group because Dr Mallard-Smith is concerned about the impact of this increase on the quality of service that can be offered and given the space limitations at the surgery and staffing levels. JHS to advise PPG if they want volunteer help for flu/Covid vaccinations.

• Proposed sensory garden – Laura explained that it was planned for the rear of the building because patients were now exiting that way. In answer to a question about whether a patient volunteer was needed to care for the garden, Laura said that maintenance of the existing garden areas already being kindly done by Dr Payne’s husband, who would also be willing to take on the additional work. The PPG approved the requested expenditure from the patient fund.

• National patient survey 2020 – Mike commended the surgery on yet another excellent set of results. Two point were raised: the lower figure regarding satisfaction with the appointment offered compared with three of the other local PCN surgeries, and a decline in the surgery’s rating compared with 2019 in “healthcare professionals recognising/understanding mental health needs”. Dr Mallard-Smith said that these findings would be considered at the GPs’ next meeting. Mike will write a short article about the survey results for the Newsletter.

• National Association for Patient Participation – it was agreed to rejoin NAPP for a trial year in order to get access to their new forum on which member PPGs can post Q+A.

• Surgery recorded phone message – Mike praised the latest much shorter message. He queried the need to include information about what to do (contact Fed Bucks) to get help in the half an hour before 8.30am and after 6pm. Dr Mallard-Smith explained that this information was needed, even though there were hardly any calls to Fed Bucks; however the surgery is open to PPG suggestions on ways of explaining for maximum understanding.

• Date of Next Meeting – Jackie to organise next meetings.

The Surgery is there to serve you, the patients.  One of the main purposes of the Patients Group is to get feedback from patients about the Practice.  The names of people who offer comments are not passed on to the surgery unless a patient asks for this to be done.

If you would be willing to be on the Patient Group’s feedback list and receive occasional emails could you please send a simple one-line email to jhs.patients.group@nhs.net saying:  “I am willing to be contacted by the John Hampden Surgery’s Patient Group” and your name.  Thank you.

The information you supply us will be used lawfully, in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998. The Data Protection Act 1998 gives you the right to know what information is held about you and sets out rules to make sure that this information is handled properly.