A warm welcome

We wanted to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves and say a heartfelt thank you for the welcome we have received from the Parkwood staff, patients and Patient Participation Group.

Following the announcement that the partners at Parkwood had made the difficult decision that they were no longer able to continue running the practice, the Central East Integrated Care Board (ICB) asked Fernville to manage PWD for an initial 12-month period. This is known as a “caretaker” arrangement.

We want to reassure everyone that this is not a merger. Parkwood and Fernville remain separate practices. You will remain registered with Parkwood, and you will continue to contact the practice and see clinicians in the usual way.

It has been a very busy few weeks!

We appreciate that this has all happened incredibly quickly, and we know it may have felt unsettling for patients and staff alike.

There has been a huge team of people working behind the scenes to make the transition happen.

Our first priority was to meet the Parkwood Surgery team, listen to their concerns and understand how the practice was working. We then had to put together a team of doctors at very short notice so that patients could continue to receive care safely, while we work towards recruiting permanent doctors and clinicians. This will take a little time, as clinicians usually have notice periods that need to be worked through.

What is changing?

One of the most noticeable changes you may have heard about is the introduction of total triage and we know that the change was introduced very quickly. However, patient safety had to be our immediate priority.

Instead of telephoning the practice for a routine or urgent appointment, or coming into reception in person, we now ask patients to complete an online form available at: www.parkwoodsurgery.nhs.uk/appointments

This is then reviewed by the duty doctor, not a receptionist, who will make sure that you receive the right care, from the right person, at the right time. Using this method allows us to cater for continuity with clinician the patient started the journey with.

We believe this is the safest and fairest way of managing requests for appointments. It helps ensure that patients who work, have caring responsibilities, or otherwise find it difficult to get through to the surgery by telephone or in person, are not disadvantaged.

It also means that every request can be audited and that we can see what action has been taken.

At Fernville, we have found that patients quickly become familiar with total triage, and many come to prefer it once they have experienced how it works.

We also recognise that not everyone has access to a computer or smartphone, and some people may simply need help completing the form. If this applies to you, our reception team will complete the form on your behalf, either over the telephone or in person.

Total triage will be the most noticeable change initially. Other changes may be less visible but will be happening in the background. These include training staff and reviewing and strengthening processes and systems to make sure that the practice is operating as safely and effectively as possible.

Working together

We want to say a huge thank you to the Parkwood patients and staff for making us feel so welcome.

At Fernville, our values are centred around being patient-focused, and we intend to put Parkwood patients at the heart of every change and decision we make.

We will keep the Parkwood website updated as much as possible. We will also be asking patients for feedback following appointments through the Friends and Family Test questionnaire. This will help us understand what is working well and where improvements are needed.

We would also encourage you to continue working closely with your very active Patient Participation Group (PPG). We will be engaging with the PPG regularly and listening to the feedback they bring to us on behalf of patients.

You have a lovely new practice building, a committed group of staff who clearly want the best for their patients, and a PPG that is passionate about the practice. We simply ask for a little time to get things moving in the right direction.

There will inevitably be some teething problems along the way, but we will listen, learn from them and make improvements.

We know that things have been difficult for many patients and staff for a long time. We are not underestimating the challenges ahead, but we are committed to getting stuck in and working with you to improve the practice.

Thank you again for your patience, understanding and warm welcome. We are very pleased to be working alongside you and look forward to getting to know the Parkwood community.