PPG Minutes - 11th March 2025

 

Location: Maiden Newton and Tunnel Road PPG Meeting - Webbers Piece Common Room, Maiden Newton, 4pm to 5.15pm, 11th March 2025

Present:

  • DW (Chair)
  • GF (Treasurer)
  • CF
  • CW
  • AJ
  • SH
  • DP
  • CB
  • BW (Secretary)
  • JK
  • AM
  • CR
  • RG.

Apologies:

  • JR
 

1. Ammonite Update – introductions and updates

Update from CG(Patient services lead) on staffing:

  • No main staffing changes at Tunnel Road or Maiden Newton
  • Matt on reception in MN is leaving– advert to replace him will go up in reception
  • New Carers Support Lead, CC, and two new staff members in Bridport
  • Two new receptionists have completed their training
  • New person needed at reception in Bridport
  • At least 4 now on shift on telephones at Bridport, quite often 5. This takes pressure off reception. 

No phones are answered at TR or MN now, because there is nowhere to take phone calls confidentially. However, the receptionists at all three locations know each other and can call each other.

There is a good team of nurse practitioners in place now at Tunnel Road. Maiden Newton has more GPs so CR is the only nurse practitioner there.

Update on renovations at Maiden Newton:

The problems with flooding damage have held up the changeover of the waiting room and reception area. The partition wall behind the reception desk is coming down next week and new flooring going in in a few weeks. Should all be done by next meeting. The surgery will give patients 4 weeks’ notice if this impacts on surgery/dispensary time.

The queue will be split into waiting for prescriptions and waiting for appointments. Should be more confidential. Dispensary assistants will be able give out prescriptions. 

Maiden Newton now has a consistent team with a good rota. Thursday opening is not going to be possible at the moment. Maiden Newton has the highest ratio of face-to-face appointments at Ammonite now, so there is no need to increase GP availability at the moment. The registrar works alongside Dr Singh two days a week.

Weekend services:

The only service available on the weekend is the remote GP service (LIVI), which covers Saturday mornings, but phone calls only. There are also pre-booked appointments with the clinical pharmacist. Beaminster Pharmacy is best place to go for medical advice on Saturdays.

 

2. Notice boards

BW has created PPG noticeboards for Maiden Newton and Tunnel Road for the minutes and TOR. This is where adverts for volunteers can be found. The walking group can also place their information there. The noticeboards will be up shortly.

 

3. Questions regarding medication reviews

This appears to be a common theme. Several patients are finding that they’ve had a medication review but were not aware. They are put back onto drugs that they had been taken off, without having notice of this. This could be a communication issue.

There are two types of medication review:

  • Automated: This could be Annual or 6 or 3-monthly monitoring – if you don’t raise any concerns and results go to named GP, they will re-authorise on assumption nothing needs to change. If results suggest changes needed, you will be contacted by letter, text, phone call.
  • Prompted: The patient requests a review – this could be carried out by a GP, nurse practitioner or clinical pharmacist depending on the issue.
  • Ammonite: If patients are concerned, they need to raise this as an individual complaint. Posters are now up in reception to remind patients to check their medication is correct before they leave the surgery. Dispensary assistants can also remind.

This led into a discussion about how easy it is to find information on the Ammonite website. The search function isn’t working well. Bridport PPG have made some recommendations for short videos to explain how e-consult works etc.

A new quarterly Patient newsletter is coming out soon. Each one will have a specific theme and would also include statistics when available, as well as any vaccine clinic schedules. 

Action: AM to put us in touch with Bridport PPG; Ammonite to circulate newsletter. 

 

4. Drivers for Beaminster

There are a dozen people that require their medication to be delivered to their homes weekly. This is done by volunteer drivers each Thursday and coordinated by RG. A few more are now needed. 

Action: RG to put up call for volunteer drivers on the noticeboard at Tunnel Road.

 

5. Feedback from patient reps

CF – regularly receives complaints from patients in Cattistock and it’s not clear how these can be addressed. Could the minutes be placed on the website. The current minutes are a year out of date. 

The walking group coordinator is still unsure of who to liaise with at the surgery.  

Ammonite: 

  • The PPG can’t access individual complaints and Ammonite’s response to these due to patient confidentiality. It’s very hard to answer them without knowing the specific context. The only way therefore to have an individual complaint addressed is via the Ammonite Website.
  • Ammonite are having difficulty getting the website provider to allow them to have more than one set of minutes posted at a time. It might be better whilst this is being resolved to take down the old minutes. PPG members can provide access via their own village websites etc. to current information. 
  • Action: AM to follow-up to ensure most recent minutes of both PPGs are available on the website. 
  • Action: AM will follow-up with the walking group coordinator.

CW and GF – will continue to work together on the question of how the themes arising from positive and negative feedback sent in via various means to Ammonite will be processed.

AM reported back on behalf of CG the feedback themes received so far this year via the website and from post-appointment surveys via email/text:

There has not been a great deal. 

Maiden Newton: Some complaints received about appointment delays – either clinician late or appointments pushed back. Comms issue (resolved on the day)

Tunnel Road: mainly administrative issues, referrals and issues with scheduling. Staff interactions one positive for nurse and one negative for reception.

Ammonite has started to collect data on the number of negative complaints received. 129 items of positive generic feedback were received one week, which was reassuring.

Most people don’t have complaints, just ‘concerns’. It can be hard to raise this on the website. If you have an issue with a pharmacy, Ammonite can’t address that. Do not use the dispensary answer phone message for ordering medication or for anything urgent as it is not checked until the end of the day.

The E-consult form is constantly updated by the provider.

 

6. AGM plans

The AGM for the PPG will be held at 7-9pm on Thursday 15th May at Toller Porcorum Village Hall. The Social Prescribing Team have confirmed that they will give a presentation and Q&A about what they offer. Unfortunately, the timing is not great for Ammonite to attend but it was felt more important that the public could be there. 

 

7. Finance update

GF has worked hard to arrange the new signatories at the bank. A cheque was given to Ammonite for the blood pressure machine at Tunnel Road.

 

8. Toller Health Café

Caroline had a very constructive meeting with AM. The date for first meeting is 10th June from 11am to 1pm.

 

9. Set dates for PPG meetings for the rest of 2025

All meetings will take place from 4.00pm – 5.15pm:

  • 24th June in Beaminster, venue TBC
  • 23rd Sept at Webbers Piece, Maiden Newton
  • 6th Jan in Beaminster, venue TBC

Action: GF to find a suitable location in Beaminster.

 

10. AOB

The local mental health charity Harmony is looking for space in Maiden Newton for their services, including the drop-in ‘Community Front Room’. Leaflets are available from the surgery.