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Patient Participation Group

A Patient Participation Group (PPG) provides an opportunity for two-way feedback between a GP practice and its patients, enabling them to work together to improve services and facilities.

The aim is to strengthen the relationship between patients and the practice, which is critical to provide modern, high-quality services.
Biddlestone Health Group aim to have a very active Patient Participation Group (PPG) which consists of a group of volunteer patients, the practice manager, and a GP Partner.

We are always looking to recruit new members. Being a member of the PPG can help patients understand more about how the practice works and the challenges it faces. It can also enable patients and practice members to work together to try and provide workable solutions. Please see below how you can get involved.

To find out more about PPGs and their role, NHS Dorset have made a useful video
Your opinion matters. Join the PPG to make sure your patient voices are heard.

Terms of Reference
The Terms of Reference for Biddlestone Health Group PPG give’s information about how the group works, it’s key tasks, how it monitors and reviews it’s work. Please see the PPG’s agreed set of Terms of Reference attached for more information. These are reviewed annually.

Aims and Objectives
• Ensure that the practice is aware of how services provided could be more responsive to patient’s needs.
• Carry out surveys and provide information on topics that may help the effective management of the Practice.
• Offer suggestions to the practice on ways to raise public awareness of the services and facilities available.
• Support the Practice in its dealings with other organisations and key partners, e.g., Pharmacies, the Local Authority etc.
• Respond to questions raised by the practice about the potential impact of service changes on patients.

What we do and examples of work
The PPG acts as a critical friend to the practice, giving feedback about GP services and changes that are made. We have an important role in enabling patients to have a say in the way services at the practice are delivered, as well as advising on what is working well and, on the other hand, where changes may be needed.
We meet each quarter, in person, with the Practice Manager and one of the GP’s to discuss issues relevant to the work of the practice. For example, clinical staff will share information about upcoming vaccination programmes, health promotion events, changes with appointment systems and details of new staff appointments and services. PPG members have an opportunity to raise any matters of concern with staff, provide feedback on proposed changes to services, and share examples of good practice that could be considered for use locally.
Recent work has included:

• Helping to redesign the practice website
• Contributing to the wording of patient surveys
• Supporting the practice to act on the findings of surveys
• Providing feedback on the appointment system and telephone messaging
• Helping with the design of patient leaflets

All of this helps to ensure that the patient voice is heard and used to influence service delivery.
Meetings

We meet four times per year, with the Practice Manager and one of the GP’s to discuss issues relevant to the work of the practice.
Meetings last for a maximum of one hour and are normally held at 6.00pm. The chairperson is rotated at each meeting.

Patient Participation Group Minutes
Minutes of each meeting are taken and placed on the website.

Join the PPG
We are actively seeking new members to join the group. Anyone over the age of 16 who is a registered patient or carer at the practice can join. We are particularly keen to welcome young adults, those with disabilities, and those from diverse backgrounds and ethnicity who are currently under-represented.

If you are interested in joining our Patient Participation Group and would like to get actively involved, please contact us at 0191 2655755 or email: [email protected] and we’ll gladly provide you with details of meeting times and up and coming projects.

Useful Websites
https://napp.org.uk/