Room for improvement, perchance?

Sun 27 Mar 2016, 14:03

Well I am a newcomer to Charlbury and I can say that Dr Baylis has probably saved my life. Feeling unwell I went to the surgery and she has been so thorough,a serious problem was discovered and I am going into the JR soon for open aurgery.If it had not been discovered,I might well have dropped dead in the next few years. I cannot say any more than that...wonderful service,friendly reception amd pharmacy. Totally professional.

Sat 26 Mar 2016, 12:59

In Oxfordshire the average number of patients per full-time GP is 1500. That would make 4500 patients in the Charlbury practice (a figure the survey that Simon linked to does not give).

Of those, 243 were sent the questionnaire. So around 5 per cent. Of those 114 replied, which is 2.5%. When we extrapolate from the results and say that one practice achieved a 70% satisfaction rating and is poor, whereas another practice achieved 80% is therefore good or at least better, what is the margin of error? Can a statistician answer this please?

Sat 26 Mar 2016, 10:01

I've always been satisfied with my treatment at Charlbury even though I may have had to push a bit hard. I can't imagine that the treatment at any GP service is perfect. Sometimes Charlbury has gone beyond the call of duty. I also have a lot of sympathy with GPs who have been subject to several reorganisations and cuts.

Fri 25 Mar 2016, 13:32

I agree Tony.

When we moved to Charlbury in the late seventies, we made inquiries about local GP's, there were 2 in Charlbury at the time. We would have preferred to register with a local practice, like many residents in Charlbury. But based on what we heard at the time, we chose to register with the White House practice in Chipping Norton. and we have had excellent service from the doctors there over the years for both minor and some major health issues. And we were pleased some years ago when there were proposals, I believe, for the Chipping Norton doctors to service Charlbury from a new surgery to be built at the top of Dancers Hill. But that did not happen. Instead, Charlbury got a new doctor and eventually a new surgery at Spendlove.

Chipping Norton now has a new health centre which is a very different environment to the traditional GP practice. And, because of its size (both Chippy practices have moved in to this centre) can offer real flexibility of service such as a walk in surgery weekdays from 8.30 - 10.30, and got a very good rating. But equally a smaller practice can boast satisfaction, with Shipton under Wychwood gaining 100% satisfaction.

So perhaps those of us who use other surgeries, despite the fact that they are actually not as convenient in terms of location, do have something to contribute to the debate. I suspect, many of us would prefer to use local doctors, but need the confidence to do this. And though we do not use Charlbury many of us may, as I have, have had sufficient experience when supporting those who are registered to have a the grounds on which to form an opinion.

Like Simon, who started the post, I hope that the Charlbury Medical Centre are able to use this survey to their benefit and to address concerns, and also to take heart from positive comments that were made.

Fri 25 Mar 2016, 11:48

I think all the many charl bury residents who feel the continued need to use chippy are fully entitled to comment on their local medical centre

Fri 25 Mar 2016, 11:13

I too have been happy with the Charlbury Medical Centre and sad that those who do not use it feel entitled to criticise. On the issue of comparison with other nearby practices, I am always suspicious of 100% satisfaction as I am of schools who get 100% SATS scores! Perhaps those who have complaints should take it up with the Practice Manager rather than doing so behind the cover of a survey.

Fri 25 Mar 2016, 11:10

There was a morning outside the Memorial Hall some time ago when people were asked to give their opinions

Fri 25 Mar 2016, 10:12

Stephen - the survey is carried out annually by a national company on behalf of the NHS. Questionnaires are sent out by post to a randomly selected group of people who are registered at each GP practice. The link I gave in my first post tells you how it all works.

Obviously the picture painted of each GP practice depends to a certain extent on the proportion of the questionnaires that are returned - and whether the people who do fill them in have a particular axe to grind one way or another. Having said that, to achieve a 47% return on a postal questionnaire is unusual, to say the least, so to me that indicates that sufficient people out of that random group are concerned enough to suggest that some aspects of the services provided at the Charlbury Medical Centre fall significantly short of those provided by other practices both locally and throughout the county as a whole.

Thu 24 Mar 2016, 16:52

I have had issues getting appointments, particularly in recent months now that there is no longer a routine clinic on a Friday morning, meaning that I have either had to use out-of-ours over the weekend or hang on until Monday, usually when one of the kids has been ill. It's often difficult to get through by phone on a Monday too. In general, it's tricky if you're working to book an appointment without having to have half a morning off work.I've had problems getting an appointment for my daughter with the same GP who has been dealing with a long term health issue that she has. Obviously, it's not ideal for her to be seen by a different doctor every time. There seem to be fewer appointments available and definitely no evening or weekend appointments, in contrast to the other surgeries around. Having said that, the standard of clinical care is very good (which is the most important thing of course!).

Thu 24 Mar 2016, 16:38

I find the reported results of the GP Patient Survey very difficult to square with my experiences of Charlbury Medical Centre over 10 years. I have nothing to complain of. How is the survey run? I have never seen a form to fill in.

Thu 24 Mar 2016, 15:23

I have never had cause for complaints from Charlbury Medical Centre,
Always get an appointment when I need it.
not sure how these results came about as I did not see any survey.
Think a survey on Best and Worst patients would be interesting

Thu 24 Mar 2016, 13:45

I would like to say that I am very satisfied with the treatment I have receved over the years from the Charlbury Medical Centre.

Wed 23 Mar 2016, 21:58 (last edited on Wed 23 Mar 2016, 22:00)

When we came to charlbury over 20 years ago we were advised not to use the local surgery We went to the chippy surgery along with many other charlbury residents and have had excellent service Obviously nothing has improved in 20 years and the local surgery continues to offer poor service with no comeback Maybe more dissatisfied patients should transfer to chippy

Wed 23 Mar 2016, 21:03

The Oxford Mail website today is reporting the results of the latest GP Patient Survey, which seeks peoples' views on various aspects of how good or otherwise they perceive their GP surgery to be. The report can be found at: www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/14378185.REVEALED__Best_and_worst_GP_surgeries_in_Oxfordshire/

Very worryingly, Charlbury Medical Centre ranks 74th out of 79 surgeries in Oxfordshire, with an "overall experience" rating of just 76%. That was based on a 47% return of questionnaires, which in itself is very impressive for a survey of this type.

You can see the results of responses to individual questions by going to: gp-patient.co.uk/practices/K84610, which provides some interesting information about how people see the service provided by the surgery. It also lets you make comparisons with other practices in the local clinical commissioning group, and nationally.

If the Wychwood surgery in Shipton can achieve a 100% rating, and the medical centre in Chippy 97%, it is difficult to see why our own surgery can't be up there with the best. Let's hope that the practice management take heed of what local patients think, and get some improvements put in place as a matter of urgency.