"Worst practice ever"

Dear Patient,

I appreciate that your review was left some time ago but as Green Porch Medical Centres new Practice Manager I want to review/respond to all patient concerns however historic.

I’m very sorry and disappointed to hear that you have had continued issues accessing our services at Green Porch Medical Centre and that having made an appointment ultimately have not been happy with the clinical care provided. It’s a challenging time for the NHS at the moment, especially in Primary Care where demand is at an all-time high.

I understand how frustrating it can be when you need to access your Primary Care Provider only to be told that there are no appointments available. This is not a problem unique to Green Porch Medical Centre and is a challenge that is being faced by the majority of Primary care Providers.

Please rest assured that we are currently exploring all options to improve access to our services across the board.

We are in the process of reviewing our clinical rota’s and appointment structure in an attempt to provide more choice and availability for patients.

We are hoping to implement a new telecoms service which will allow us to review our data and implement changes in line with demand.

We are also looking at staffing levels and are hoping, over time, to increase the size of our team to provide better access and a better service to our patients.

These changes will take time and we are not necessarily able to implement these changes all at once, however, please know that the team here at Green Porch are hearing and listening to patient concerns and are actively working to address and rectify those concerns where possible.

Patients in Kent and Medway are now able to use an app to view waiting times at local urgent treatment centres (UTCs) and minor injury units (MIUs).

The WaitLess app can help patients who have decided to go to a UTC or MIU make an informed choice about which site to visit.

It displays the number of people waiting and the longest waiting times, along with travel information, so patients can decide to visit a site that is not so busy.

Although this is not a solution for the issue of access, these centres are there to provide support to patients who find their GP practices do not have suitable appointments. Perhaps this may be a suitable alternative while we address and rectify some outstanding issues here at Green Porch.

If you wish to discuss the matter further or have any additional points to raise please feel free to contact me directly at callum.mcque@nhs.net

Your sincerely,

Callum McQue

Practice Manager

Green Porch Medical Centre