West-Hill Health PCN and our practice as a member are committed to making it easier for patients to access the right care, at the right time, in the right way.

Over the past year, practices across our Primary Care Network have worked together to improve access, strengthen continuity of care and offer more flexible ways for patients to contact us. We will continue building on this work throughout the coming year.

What We Have Been Working On

Improving Phone Access

• Regular monitoring of phone systems and call data to help reduce waiting times
• Ongoing reviews to improve how quickly calls are answered
• Monthly reporting across practices to support continuous improvement

Improving Online Consultations (PATCHS)

• Standardised processes introduced across practices
• Online consultation requests reviewed at least 3 times daily
• At least 90% of clinical requests responded to within 1 working day
• At least 90% of non-clinical requests responded to within 3 working days
• Improved safety-netting and clearer processes for managing requests

NHS App & Digital Services

• Increased appointment availability through the NHS App, including some weekend NHS App slots at St Charle’s Hub
• Promotion of the NHS App through websites, SMS messages, reception teams and phone messaging
• More ways for patients to:
  • Book appointments
  • Request help online
  • Manage parts of their healthcare digitally

Patient Engagement & Feedback

• Delivered a PCN-wide patient engagement programme focused on improving access
• Worked closely with Patient Participation Groups (PPGs)
• Co-produced a patient access survey with patients to help shape improvements
• Continued paitent engagement activities across practices

Listening to Patient Feedback

• Successfully delivered a patient survey across all PCN practices
• Feedback used to:
  • Identify areas where access could improve
  • Better understand patient experience and barriers to access
  • Help guide future improvements

Continuity of Care

• Continued focus on supporting patients with complex or ongoing health needs
• Named care teams introduced for some high-risk patients
• Improved coordination between GPs, nurses and other healthcare professionals
• Continued work to strengthen care planning and multidisciplinary support

Faster & More Flexible Access

• Improved care navigation to help patients access the most appropriate service first time
• Increased use of multidisciplinary teams to improve appointment availability
• Patients able to contact practices in different ways:
  • By phone
  • Online consultation
  • NHS App
  • In person

Continuous Improvement Across the PCN

• Regular audits and reviews carried out across practices to improve quality and access
• Shared learning between practices to support consistent improvements
• Use of data and patient feedback to help identify priorities and improve services

Our Commitment to You

We are proud of the progress made across our Primary Care Network and remain committed to continuing this work.

Over the next year, we will continue to:

• Improve access to care
• Offer more flexible ways to contact practices
• Use patient feedback to shape services
• Strengthen continuity and coordinated care
• Continue improving patient experience across all practices