The Woodley Centre Surgery Patient Participation Group (PPG) represents the views of patients to the surgery’s doctors and their colleagues.

Aim of the Group

To represent the views of the patients of Woodley Centre Surgery, as well as their carers and advocates, and to work alongside the practice and its staff to improve services to patients.

Membership

The PPG is open to all patients who are registered at the practice, as well as the carers of those patients. The patients that join the committee must be committed to representing all patients and not their own personal needs or the needs of individual patients of the surgery.

The PPG will endeavour to make every effort to ensure that its membership reflects the diversity of the practice population. Every effort will be made to be inclusive of all patients who wish to be members of the PPG including facilitating attendance of members who may require additional support to attend meetings due to their individual needs such as disability, access or other needs.

Membership will be automatically terminated if a member leaves the practice.

The PPG will agree a chair to be the day to day point of contact between the practice and the PPG. A virtual membership may be developed and maintained by the practice, providing a wider reference group for the PPG committee.

Objectives

The PPG will aim to:

• Act as an advisory group, providing the patient perspective on the operation of the practice, informed by various sources of patient feedback that the practice will share with the PPG;
• Advise the practice on how to improve communications;
• Support the practice in undertaking surveys;
• Help the practice to improve its links to the voluntary sector and to promote self-care groups and information.

Meetings

The PPG will meet on a regular basis (currently bi-monthly) and will review the frequency of meetings at the start of each financial year or as required at participants’ request. Each meeting will be attended by representatives of the Practice, normally the Practice Manager and/or deputy, a nominated GP Partner and other Practice staff as necessary.

The meetings will be minuted by the practice and these will be uploaded onto the practice website, the PPG Noticeboard and sent to the PPG members. Meeting Agendas will be agreed between the practice and the PPG.

A schedule of future PPG Meetings will be posted on the PPG Noticeboard and Practice website.

External speakers may be invited to PPG Meetings from time to time, with the agreement of the members.

Practice Commitment

• The practice is committed to working in an open and transparent fashion with the PPG.
• It will keep the PPG informed of service developments and seek their views at each stage of development, wherever possible.
• It will report honestly on progress in implementing changes and will advise the PPG where improvements recommended by the PPG prove not to be possible.

Last updated March 2019