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| 2013 |
Executive Committee Members: Patricia Daniels (PD), John Doland (JD), Doris Halls (DoH), David Harper (DaH), Joyce Jarvis (JJ), Josephine Powell (JP), Chris Stannard (CS)
Emilio Ceraudo (EC) and L.M. Stockman (LMS) were absent with apologies.
Surgery Representatives: Trish Hawitt Palmer (THP)
The minutes from the meeting of 27 February 2013 were approved.
DaH reported that he had sent a letter to Dr Thomas Reichhelm, the managing and medical director of Malling Health, to introduce the PPG and its work, and to ask whether Malling Health intends to support us. The letter also suggested that Malling Health should organise a public meeting.
Dr Reichhelm had sent back a very positive response, confirming Malling Health's intention to support the PPG, and agreeing that there should be a public meeting.
DaH reported that following further contact with Lesley Davis, Malling Health's practice manager at St. Neots, a public meeting had been organised for the evening of Tuesday, 7 May. Malling Health will notify all registered patients about this meeting after the company has taken over the running of the surgery.
DaH noted that he had invited Lesley Davis and her clinical colleagues to the April PPG meeting.
TPH reported that the Acorn Partnership had met with Malling Health concerning the handover of the practice.
Malling Health plans to provide two GPs. Dr Yasser Rasool will be full-time, working four days a week. Dr Rasool is currently at Malling Health's Sts Neots surgery but he has asked to be transferred to Bar Hill. The second GP will be Dr Sujata Bhandari; she will work part-time. There will also be a nurse but THP did not know her name.
PD asked whether the nurse will be a nurse practitioner. THP replied that she would not be a nurse practitioner. She did not know what speciality skills the new nurse would bring with her.
THP said that the current practice nurse, Trish Corcoran, had decided not to transfer to Malling Health, and will be going to the Cambourne surgery instead. Of the remaining staff, all have agreed to be transferred under TUPE, with the exception of Jack Edge, the receptionist, who has resigned.
JD asked how many GPs the Acorn Partnership had provided at the maple surgery. THP said that there had been 4 GPs, each working a specific day of the week, and that this arrangement had brought a wide range of skills and knowledge to the practice. She said that the new two-GP arrangement under Malling Health was likely to provide similar cover to the partnership of Dr Hassan and Dr Ranasinghe.
THP said that there would be no on-site practice manager, and that Lesley Davis would manage the practice from St. Neots. Malling Health still planned to provide early opening.
THP said that Dr Boyle, the senior partner at the Acorn Partnership, had asked her to convey his thanks to the PPG for their support over the past two and a half years. He felt that the Acorn Partnership had put in place a robust system which will enable Malling Health to continue to deliver safe, high-quality services at the maple surgery.
JP asked whether there would be a regular audit of the services provided by Malling Health. THP said that there will be quarterly reviews. There would also be monitoring of performance indicators in which the Acorn Partnership had got excellent results.
JP asked how patients could complain if they felt that the quality of care was not up to standard. THP suggested that they could contact the Patient Advisory and Liaison Service.
DaH reminded the meeting that the question of whether the new provider could be removed due to poor performance had been raised at the public meeting in October, where we had been told that this was not possible under current NHS rules.
JD said that this had been covered in the discussion of the previous item.
DaH circulated the list of suggested questions which had been emailed to him by LMS.
It was noted that several of the questions had already been answered during the earlier discussion.
Other questions were then suggested:
Action: DaH will circulate the list of questions to the mailing list, and members can comment and add new questions.
There was no other business.
The meeting adjourned at 7:15 p.m.
The next ordinary meeting of the Executive Committee of the PPG will take place at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, 24 April 2013, in the TNT Room at Bar Hill Church. Tea and coffee will be served before the meeting, from 6:00 p.m.
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