In order to improve our patient care, we recently collected feedback from our patients by giving a questionnaire to a random selection of 76 of our patients (or their carers) asking them to evaluate their experiences with our practice. This includes aspects of the practice such as:
Access and availability – making an appointment and waiting to see a GP;
Communication and interpersonal skills of reception staff;
Interpersonal and communication skills of GPs and nurses;
Provision of information by GPs; and
Privacy and confidentiality.
We have now completed our analysis of the feedback and would like to share some of the significant findings.
Overall results
We found that most respondents rated our practice as “very good” or “excellent” in all but one of the areas surveyed (car parking, which is discussed in more detail below). Results were consistently very high across all other areas.
It therefore seems that most of our patients are very satisfied with the level of health care they receive at our practice and with the service they receive from our staff. Comments left by respondents were generally very positive and complimentary of our team members, and we were therefore very pleased with the results.
Car Parking
(Update October 2019: North Brighton Medical has now re-located to 75 Asling Street, Brighton, where we have on-site parking for patients, as well as abundant on-street parking. This means our patients’ biggest gripe about our clinic has been resolved!)
The one aspect where we did not score as highly was for “ease of car parking”. This was unsurprising, as we are aware that the local streets are often quite full of cars, and our staff struggle with the same issue.
Some respondents acknowledged that parking is outside of our control. However, we would at least like to improve parking for some of our more vulnerable patients. We asked the City of Bayside to change the parking restrictions in front of the clinic by designating:
a disabled parking space (as the nearest space is on Asling Street); and
a 5-minute drop off space to assist parents and carers dropping off ill patients (and this space could also be used by an ambulance in an emergency).
They declined to do so, but indicated that they might be willing to act if there is sufficient community demand. Therefore, we have launched a petition to the council, which you will be able to download from our website, or you can obtain a copy from our receptionist. We will also put up a sign in our waiting area asking patients if they would like to sign the petition.
In addition, we ask patients to consider alternatives to driving (where possible). For example:
Patients who live within a 15-minute walk of the practice might consider walking – indeed, it will often be quicker than finding a car space and then walking to the practice from it! In addition, the number one health tip our GPs give to patients is to be more active, so walking will have the added advantage of improving your health; and
Patients who live near a train station on the Sandringham line or near bus routes 219, 626, 703, 823 and 922 (which stop on Bay Street) might consider taking public transport.
Check PTV’s Journey Planner to assist.
We completely understand that these options won’t be viable for some patients, especially at times of ill-health. If you do need to drive, we simply ask that you keep the parking shortage in mind and give yourself plenty of time to find a parking spot, as this will minimise the chances of you being late for your appointment, which might cause cascading delays.
If parking in front of the practice is full, we suggest trying Cochrane Street, Outer Crescent, the west end of Bay Street, the underground car park at 1 Asling Street, or the parking near the railway station, all of which are a relatively short walk away. See our Contact Us page for a map of the local area showing these streets and parking areas.
We do appreciate your patience and understanding with regards to parking. We hope that the rest of your experience at our practice makes up the for the inconvenience it causes.
Other Suggestions for Improvement
Our final question was to ask “If you could change one thing about this practice, what would you change?”. Aside from improvements to parking, we received some valuable suggestions, including:
Opening hours
Some respondents suggested we expand our opening hours. This year, we started opening one hour later on Thursday (until 7.30pm), and we are looking at further extending our opening hours in future, for example so that we open later on other weekdays and on Sundays. We expect this to occur gradually as our practice grows. (Update October 2019: Due to lack of practitioner availability, we have unfortunately switched back to closing at 6.30pm on Thursdays. We will re-look at this as our practice grows in 2020).
Pathology
One respondent suggested we have an on-site pathology service to take blood samples. In fact, we are currently in discussions with pathology providers to use one of our empty rooms for pathology collections, and we hope to have this implemented by mid-2019. (Update October 2019: This is now expected to occur in early-2020, with the delay caused by the re-location of our premises).
Drinking water
Several respondents suggested we have drinking water available in the waiting area, for example from a fountain or filtered water dispenser.
We have previously considered having bottled water available, but one of our practice’s values is minimising waste, so we prefer to avoid single-use containers. We will continue to look into suitable options for a dispenser. In the meantime, we actually do have cups of water available on request from reception currently, however we will now put up a sign in the waiting area to notify patients of this.
Conclusion
We would like to again thank everyone who participated in the questionnaire for their valuable contribution to improving our practice.
If you would like to give further feedback, please contact our Practice Manager on 03 8506 9949 or email enquiries@northbrightonmedical.com.au, or you can use the suggestion box located in our reception area. In particular, if you made a suggestion which hasn’t been addressed here, let us know and we can happily discuss.
We look forward to continuing to provide you with quality healthcare.
Justin Meyer, Practice Manager
On behalf of the GPs and staff members at North Brighton Medical