The results of the latest GP patient survey show that local patients have overwhelmingly good experiences when they go to see their GP, with only one CCG in the country scored higher than B&NES for overall patient experience.
A total of 3,139 people in B&NES took part in the survey in the spring and summer of 2015, with almost 850,000 people taking part nationally.
Among B&NES respondents, 92 per cent said that they had good experiences at their GP practice, compared with a national average of 85 per cent.
Almost two-thirds of people felt that they didn’t have to wait too long for a GP appointment and nearly all (95 per cent) reported being able to book an appointment at a convenient time.
This figure could be even higher next year after the introduction of Patient Partner – the 24-hour phone booking system available in B&NES since November 2015.
“These results are a well-deserved recognition of the high quality of care provided by our local practices,” said Dr Ruth Grabham, the Medical Director of BaNES CCG.
“This really highlights B&NES GP’s commitment to ensuring patients have a great experience of primary care.”
She added that the target now is to “maintain this level of performance when we are faced with ever-increasing demands on GPs’ time, fewer new recruits and many local GPs approaching retirement.”
Patients in B&NES also trust and have high levels of confidence in local doctors, with 95 per cent saying they trusted the GP they saw at their last visit.
Most people are also very happy with how easy it is to get through to someone at their GP surgery on the telephone, with 90 per cent saying that they could see or speak to a GP or nurse when they wanted to.
All of these figures are higher than the national averages.
