This year’s GP Patient Survey revealed a big decrease in satisfaction from patients - particularly with their ability to get appointments. However, there are still many surgeries getting glowing feedback from those who use them - including one in Greater Manchester that has climbed to the country's top spot.
Patients are less happy with their GPs than in previous years, the data shows. The proportion who said their experience of their practice was very or fairly good dropped from 83.0 per cent in 2021, which was similar to previous years, to 72.4 per cent in 2022. The proportion describing their experiences as fairly or very poor has doubled from 6.7 per cent in 2021 to 13.6 per cent in 2022. Much of the drop appears to relate to frustrations over getting appointments.
But in Greater Manchester, High Lane Medical Centre in Stockport has achieved the greatest accolade. The practice has not only become the highest ranked surgery in the region, according to analysis by the Reach Data Unit, and ranking number one out of 6,418 practices across England. Of those surveyed, 99 per cent said their overall experience of the practice was good, with 97 per cent saying the experience of making an appointment was good - an incredible 100 per cent said they had been treated with care and concern at their last appointment.
