GP appointments system given a clean bill of health
SEVEN in 10 patients in Manchester are happy with appointments being offered by their local doctors.
The figures come from the GP patient survey, a huge NHS-sponsored poll which saw more than 700,000 patients answer detailed questions about their experience of their local surgery.
In the Manchester CCG area, 7,372 patients gave their views on the last time they tried to make an appointment.
Some 71 per cent said they were satisfied with the appointment time they were offered.
A further 23pc said they were not satisfied but took the appointment anyway, while 6pc said they were not satisfied and did not take the appointment.
Of those, just under half (47pc) said the reason they were dissatisfied was because there were not slots available at the time and on the day they wanted.
Roughly a third (33pc) of those who turned down an appointment as unsuitable ended up seeking no medical advice whatsoever about their illness or condition.
Some 28pc of all patients in Manchester said their overall experience of making an appointment at a surgery in the city was ‘very good.’
A further 39pc rated it ‘good,’ while 9pc rated it ‘fairly poor’ and 6pc ‘very poor.’ The data suggests patients in Manchester are less happy with the appointment system than in other parts of England. Across the country as a whole, 74pc of patients said they were happy with the appointment time offered the last time they contacted their GP. Some 20pc said they were unhappy but took the appointment anyway, while 6pc were unhappy – and said ‘no.’ Corby in Northamptonshire had the highest proportion of unhappy patients, with only 61pc saying they were satisfied with the appointments they were offered. Nottingham West and Hambleton, Richmondshire and Whitby had the happiest patients, with 85pc happy with the offered times and dates.