PPG: Newsletter May 2022

BACK TO MAIN INDEX

Because you are a patient at St Lawrence you are a member of the Patient Participation Group (PPG).

The PPG has a team, with a chair, secretary, & treasurer, that co-ordinates activities. They also liaise with other patient support groups locally and nationally to share ideas.

Along with other volunteers who are happy to be involved with events, one off requests etc. we help to:

• Provide the patient perspective when the surgery needs to make changes to services or when a new service is being thought about.
• Organize specific events, groups and activities for patients.
• Raise funds for the provision and maintenance of equipment not normally available from statutory or Practice funds.

During 2021, a fundraising campaign was promoted on Facebook. Monies raised through this, along with a gift aid claim, totalled £5000. We added to this from money already raised and were able to purchase a High Resolution ENT Microscope.

Dr Stokes said

‘We are incredibly grateful to all our patients and the PPG for raising an amazing amount of money £8,000, so that we can perform very delicate procedures on our patients. This will include microsuction, removing foreign objects from the ear canal and having a very clear view of the ear drum, thank you so much again, we are all very excited to start using it!’

Patient Improvement Group

Judith Skitt, Treasurer is one of the members of this group. Quarterly meetings happen with the Practice Manager, Patient Services Manager and Deputy Patient Services Manager to look at how we can improve. Patient surveys have been the focus of this group in 2021/2022 ; writing the questions and responding to the survey responses. We have also been looking at ways to improve the telephone experience.

Education/Health

Lindsay Butterfield (Acting Chair of the PPG) works alongside Dr Catherine Joslin (GP Lead for Worthing) and Jo Wadey attending meetings with the schools and colleges across Worthing to see how health and education can work together to ensure children attend school. The practice and schools/colleges also share safeguarding contacts on this.

The practice holds team meetings with parents, teachers and/or SENCO staff to try and put provisions in place to get children into school. No letters are written to schools anymore by the GPs in the practice to say that a child cannot attend. Instead the project has committed to direct communication with each other.

The group has written a joint letter to all parents to let them know of the close working. St Lawrence Surgery and Victoria Road Surgery has been the trail blazes for Worthing on this project. Quarterly meetings happens regularly.

The CCG safeguarding team are invited to the meeting and all other children’s mental health services to continue to share the resources out there. This group continues to develop and work together.

Amazon Smile

If you are buying from Amazon please consider supporting the surgery by using Amazon Smile. All you need to do is search for and open Amazon Smile, look at the left hand side of the Amazon banner and where it says ’Supporting’ search for Friends of St Lawrence Surgery. Once this is done, you just purchase as normal but Amazon will donate 0.5% of the net purchase price of eligible purchases to us. Every little helps! Thank you.

Outside work I love travelling and used to work as cabin crew so have an interest in aviation. I also love trying new places to eat and like to think of myself as a bit of a foodie!"

Eleanor was an ST3 at the surgery before joining us as a fully qualified GP. ST3 doctors are in their final year of GP training and work in the practice for 12 months. They are qualified doctors who have decided to pursue a career in general practice. They have their own surgeries, but are overseen by their GP trainer.

Finally thank you for your support over the last couple of years

We look forward to meeting many of you when we are able to hold events once again.