From this week (January 2019), more than 10,000 people are being given an opportunity to tell the NHS about their experiences of using services at the GP practice they are registered with.  The GP Patient Survey invites a sample of people aged 16 and over from the 33 practices across the borough to take part.

The survey provides detailed information about the range of ways people interact with primary care staff and how good that experience is. It plays a key role in understanding what’s working and what needs to improve.  It is a key source of information for understanding the impact of recent changes introduced in primary care, such as extended opening hours and other initiatives, which were carried out in response to what patients said in previous years’ surveys.

NHS Barnsley Clinical Commissioning Group is supporting the survey and wants to encourage as many people as possible to complete the survey if they receive one.

Chris Millington, lay member for patient and public involvement at Barnsley CCG said: “Last year around 3,500 people filled out the survey. That’s fantastic but we really want to hear from all the 10,000 who will be sent a survey. The more feedback we get, the better the picture we can get of what people think works well and what they’d like to see done differently in GP surgeries in our area.

“Your GP surgery really is at the heart of your local community. Whether we use it once a year or once a month, we’ve all got an opinion on it haven’t we, so please have your say and send in your feedback.”

Those who are randomly selected to take part will receive a letter over the next few weeks, along with a questionnaire.  They can complete it – by post or online – until the end of March and there is a range of options to make it more inclusive for people who need support to help them take part. Their information is handled securely and no-one is identified when the findings are published.

The questionnaire asks not just about the care provided by GPs, but also about seeing other healthcare professionals such as on-site pharmacists, mental health specialists and practice nurses.  The survey aims too to find out more about people’s experiences of using online services, telephone services and face-to-face appointments.  It also looks at how much support people get with managing long-term conditions and medication.

Patients who are not invited to take part in this year’s survey can still provide useful feedback to their GP practice teams by filling in a Friends and Family Test (FFT) form at their practice any time.  It is open to everyone, any time and every practice is involved. 

• The survey is conducted for NHS England for Ipsos MORI, one of the largest market research companies in the UK.
• More than 800,000 people across England normally respond to the survey.
• Findings from the survey are open to anyone to look at on the survey website:  https://www.gp-patient.co.uk/