Category Archives: Health

At The West Beckenham AGM on Thursday 13 June, Jessica Arnold told us that the four GP surgeries who offer times appointments for blood tests are in Annerley, Bromley and Orpington. The Annerley surgery is Oakfield Surgery in Oakfield Road, near Annerley Station.  This is very difficult to get to by public transport.

Jessica also said there was little prospect of any further surgeries offering blood tests for people other than their own patients, due to the logistical problems of collecting the blood samples and getting them to the testing laboratory within the required limits.

It therefore looks like we will continue to have two hour waits for tests at Beckenham Beacon.

There were disturbing scenes at the walk in blood test service at Beckenham Beacon on 4 April. Patients were angry at the long wait – a two hour wait is now common place. Nurses, who were doing their best, felt harassed and abused. The head nurse pointed out that patients could get timed appointments by ringing a number displayed, but people said they had no idea where these places were, so didn’t use this service.

The long waits have come about because the blood test service at PRU has been closed and the demand at Beckenham Beacon and Orpington has increased dramatically. WBRA asked Bromley Clinical Commissioning Group what steps they were taking to address these problems. We also asked if more information could be given at the Beacon about the location of surgeries offering timed appointments.

We received the following reply.

During the first week of April we carried out an audit of the King’s phlebotomy clinics at Beckenham Beacon and Orpington Hospital. I wasn’t present during the incident you mentioned but I was told about it by the lead nurse and I can assure you the CCG is fully aware there continues to be pressure on the walk-in clinics and the staff working within them.

 We have taken some steps since the April audit to address the situation in the short term:

·         The CCG has opened discussions with the Bromley GP Alliance (who run our community phlebotomy service) about the possibility of making more appointments available to alleviate pressure on the walk-in clinics and we hope to be discussing these plans with them shortly.

·         The CCG has also asked for the increased promotion and visibility of publicity materials in the walk-in clinics and GP surgeries.

·         The CCG regularly promotes the community phlebotomy service to GPs through our weekly Primary Care bulletin which goes out to all practices. It is vital that GPs and practice staff recommend the community options to patients.

 Additionally, there is now signage, in the life-size shape of a local GP, situated in both walk-in clinics, that provides better information about the community phlebotomy service, including location of participating surgeries. Thank you for your suggestion and for bringing this to our attention.

 When King’s informed us they would be closing their walk-in clinic at the PRUH,  we analysed how many people were using this service and where they were travelling from. We then commissioned extra appointments from our bookable appointment service, including two new five day a week clinics, to meet the demand created by the PRUH clinic closure and minimise the numbers using the remaining walk-in clinics.

 However, despite the availability of booked appointments there has remained a high demand on walk-in clinics. In the last year the number of GP requests for a blood test has increased from over 204 000 requests in 2018 to over 215 000 requests for the same period in 2019. This is a 5.2 % increase in demand for phlebotomy in Bromley which was a higher increase than we expected.

A Patient Participation Group (PPG) is one of the ways that Bromley Clinical Commissioning Group consults with and involves patients in planning and running GPs surgeries.

Anyone can join – why not find out about your GP practice and join in?

PPGs are a way for patients and carers to:

• work with GPs and practice staff to improve local services and the quality of care
• improve communication with patients
• promote health and wellbeing
• ensure practices remain accountable and responsive to patient needs.

Why are PPG members valuable?

PPG members suggest ideas for improvements and voice any concerns about how services are organised or managed to best meet their needs and the needs of the local community.

How does a PPG work?

A PPG obtains the views of patients about the services in the practice and contributes to decision making in the practice. It acts as a sounding board on patients’ needs, concerns and interests and helps patients to understand the practice viewpoint. It helps to promote information which may assist with health or social care.

PPGs can work in a number of different ways. They usually include volunteer patients, the GP practice manager, and maybe one or two GPs. The GP practice may provide some administrative support.

Most groups have regular meetings at the surgery. Some also involve a wider group of patients using e-mail to communicate news and seek patient views. Some GP practices run only a ‘virtual group’, using email only as the most effective way to engage with local patients and carers.

PPGs can also provide an area in the waiting room with up-to-date information on current activities and opportunities for patients to comment (e.g. suggestion box). This can raise patient awareness of the range of services available at the surgery and help patients to use services effectively.