Contact, care and what comes next: People's experiences of GP practices in North Yorkshire.
But the picture isn't all negative. Many people also praised helpful reception staff, good care and being listened to. It shows that getting an appointment and the care people receive can be very different experiences.
Our new report, Contact, care and what comes next: People's experiences of GP practices in North Yorkshire, brings together the views of 232 people who shared their experiences with us.
We wanted to find out what works well when people contact or use their GP practice, what makes things difficult and what could be improved.
These findings tell us about the experiences of people who took part, rather than everyone who uses GP practices across North Yorkshire.
What did people tell us?
Of the 228 people who answered our question about their recent overall experience, 58% rated it good or very good. A further 26% described their experience as mixed, while 16% rated it poor or very poor.
But most people who took part had experienced at least one difficulty when contacting or using their practice.
Among the 197 people who reported difficulties:
- 67% said they had waited too long for an appointment.
- 65% had difficulty getting through on the phone.
People described long telephone queues, struggling to arrange appointments around work and having to try repeatedly to get through.
Others had much better experiences, including quick responses, helpful reception staff and getting appointments when they needed them.
Someone can value the care they receive while still finding it difficult to access that care in the first place.
One way of getting help doesn't work for everyone
Some people told us that GP practice websites and online forms made it quicker and easier to request help.
But others found websites confusing, struggled with online forms or simply preferred to speak to someone. Some didn't have access to the internet or a mobile phone.
People also wanted more opportunities to see a familiar GP or healthcare professional, particularly when dealing with ongoing health concerns.
And getting an appointment wasn't always the end of the difficulty.
When we asked whether people understood what would happen next after contacting their practice or having an appointment, 38% said they weren't always clear or didn't know.
Some didn't know when they would receive test results, what those results meant, whether a referral had been made or who they should contact if they heard nothing.
What we heard shows that getting GP care isn't just about securing an appointment. It's also about being able to get in touch in a way that works for you, receiving the right help and knowing what happens next.
What needs to change?
We want GP practices and the NHS to use what people have told us to see what's working and what needs to improve.
Our report makes three recommendations:
- Use people's experiences to check whether improvements are working. NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board should look at people's feedback alongside existing GP access data, identify recurring problems and explain whether changes are making a difference.
- Check that different ways of getting in touch work for people. GP practices should ask people whether they can get the help they need by phone, online or in person, including those with different accessibility, communication or support needs, and make changes where problems keep coming up.
- Make it clearer what happens next. People should know what to expect after tests, referrals and other follow-up, including likely timescales where known, who's responsible and what to do if they don't hear anything.
We know many GP practices are already working to improve people's experiences, and that different communities and practices face different challenges.
What matters is whether those changes are actually making things better for people.
What will Healthwatch do next?
We'll share the report with NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board and GP practices across North Yorkshire, and ask what action is being taken in response.
We'll also encourage practices to look at what people are telling them, including whether different ways of getting in touch work for people with different needs, whether accessibility and communication needs are being met, and whether people understand what happens next.
We want to hear what's working well, what practices have learned and what they're planning to change.
We'll share examples of improvements made or planned, so people can see how their feedback is being used and what difference it's making.
Read the full report:
