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Results of the first two patient surveys published

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17 December 2009

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The results of the first two quarterly collections of the 2009-10 Ipsos MORI GP Patient Survey have been published today (17 December 2009).

Since April 2009, the GP Patient Survey has been running as a quarterly survey, with questionnaires being mailed out quarterly to around 1.4 million adults who are registered with a GP in England.

The Department of Health (DH) has advised against making direct comparisons to the results for 2008-09, which were published in June, because the latest results are only for half a year.

In addition, it says changes in results could be due to changes in the time of year that data that have been collected. Once quarterly data have been collected for more than one year, says the DH, this will allow for a clearer idea of seasonality in result.

The key latest results are:

  • 72% of patients who wanted to book ahead for an appointment with a GP reported that they were able to do so.
  • 81% of patients who tried to get a quick appointment with a GP said they were able to do so within 48 hours.
  • 91% of patients reported that they were either very satisfied or fairly satisfied with the overall care they receive at their surgery (this is the same figure as in last year’s survey).
  • 68% of patients reported that they were either very satisfied or fairly satisfied with their ability to get through to their doctor’s surgery on the phone.
  • 75% of patients who wanted to book an appointment with a particular doctor at their GP surgery said they were able to do so all of the time or a lot of the time.
  • 81% of patients responded that they were either very satisfied or fairly satisfied with the hours their GP surgery was open.
  • 65% of patients say they would know how to contact an out-of-hours GP service if they needed to, when their surgery was closed.

Department of Health

Related story: GP Patient Survey shows 91% are satisfied with their care

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