How might we improve people’s confidence in the health system by making it easier to navigate and improving their experience of contacting primary care?

Why do we need to work on this?

• People find it hard to contact services – we hear frustration about having to phone at 8am, waiting in long phone queues, automated systems (press 1 for X etc) and online information being difficult to understand.
• People tell us they feel confused about why GP practices are working differently than they were before the pandemic.
• General practice now offers a wider range of services and employs a whole team of people in different roles – but people don’t understand this offer, and some people feel that unless they see a GP they are being ‘fobbed off’.
• People have an even harder time accessing GP services if they are unfamiliar with the NHS, speak English as a second language, or have disabilities.

What ideas did we come up with at our event?

• Improve universal online access - one system for all patients across Bradford District and Craven
• Developing wellbeing services as a physical, integral part of the GP surgery
• Call-back system for people phoning practices and more information on different ways to access
• Increase in awareness of different ways of accessing primary care / different offers within primary care – build on ‘It’s a GP Practice Thing’ campaign
• Questions or systems people can use to triage themselves
• Rebrand ‘GP Practice’ and change how we describe the workforce 

In the forum below, tell us...

What do you think of these ideas?  

What questions do you have?

What do you think would make the biggest difference?