A HYDE GPs’ surgery is officially the highest-rated in the country after bucking the national trend amid a stark decline in NHS satisfaction rates.
The Brooke Surgery, on Market Street, came out on top in the survey ran by internet giant Google – receiving a rating of 4.7 with more than 590 patient reviews.
It is the only NHS GP surgery in the country open for patient requests 24/7, 365 days a year.
And its team has transformed primary care in Tameside by providing unprecedented levels of access to upwards of 19,500 patients.
The headlines may have been dominated by overall public satisfaction with the NHS hitting a new low in the British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey.
For the first time ever, it found that in 2023 less than a quarter of people were satisfied with the NHS overall.
Public satisfaction with general practice fell slightly in 2023, down one percentage point to 34 per cent, the lowest level since it began in 1983.
Respondents to the survey – widely regarded as the gold standard for measuring the public’s view of the health service – indicated that long waiting times, staff shortages, and lack of funding were the reasons for their poor feedback.
But in Hyde, a different picture is being painted as The Brook Surgery came out on top.
A direct effect of the access has been relieving pressures on secondary care – Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board data has shown that this level of efficiency led to a significant reduction in the number of patients attending A&E and contacting 111.
Drs Nabeel Arshad, Shay Kuponu and Ashfaq Faruq are working hard to challenge the status quo.
The average time from a patient first making a request to the patient completing their appointment is just five hours – including face to face appointments.
More than just inbound care, the team is communicating with patients, creating a library of videos detailing seasonal health advice and surgery updates.
As an example, heading into spring and summer 2023 the team published videos on dealing with common summer conditions such as hay fever, enabling patients to self-care.
These videos became so popular that many went beyond The Brooke Surgery’s community, with patients sharing them with family and friends across Manchester.
Dr Arshad said: “Naturally, as someone who has worked for the NHS for over a decade, it’s disheartening to see patients feel so let down.
“The NHS leads the world in terms of equity of access and ensuring people don’t suffer financial hardship when they are ill, but it is widely understood that the service is held back by poor resourcing and funding.
“As a result, and certainly something we are seeing in our catchment, people are reluctant to sign up to GPs or access healthcare until they become really poorly.
“We want to turn that attitude on its head by offering exceptional care to our community.”
Despite being the highest Google rated GP in the UK and becoming nationally and internationally recognised for excellence, the practice partners found locals had historically poor interactions with the service.
That is a big reason why they have adopted their approach.
Dr Kuponu added: “Hyde is a tight knit community and word of mouth is an invaluable tool to us – but seeing all of the positive patient reviews online shows us how valued our work is.
“That’s what really motivates us to continue.
“We would love to see more people join our surgery and access the care they are entitled to.
“While we know that there are obstacles ahead, we are determined to continue providing exceptional care.”
Find out more at: https://brookesurgery.co.uk/
The awards and praise are richly deserved, between them they have transformed healthcare in Hyde.
It is a now a matter of pride that my family can be counted as patients of this practice particularly when many comments of Hyde are extremely negative.
Many Doctors Practices would benefit from the example set by the team at the Brooke Surgery. Congratulations to all on your well deserved success, it is appreciated.
Have you asked any older Patients at Brooke Surgery there Opinions on the Brooke Surgery? As a older Patient with many things wrong with me I find it near impossible to see a Doctor, and more to the point I know!
The Brooke Surgery has provided us with 1st class healthcare service. They have a fantastic team of healthcare professionals from Doctors to reception staff.
I am an older patient at the practice, with the normal multitude of illnesses that are common to my age group. The surgery offers by far and away the best service in Tameside. Many older people find it difficult to get used to the fact, that is no longer possible to simply walk in to the surgery and get to see a doctor. However the systems that are in place if used correctly can ensure that a patient gets the help they need in a very short time. This is however linked closely with computer or mobile telephone access to the NHS application and on line contact programme called ” Ask my GP” , which can cause a barrier for the older generation, however the surgery can and do offer to put patients in touch with a group of people who are all volunteers and go by the name of “Health Champions” who will spend whatever time it takes to show patents how to use the these applications and how to get the best results from the medical team at the surgery. The surgery is very deserving of this accolade and I and my wife are very happy to be patients.
It seems extraordinary that you need to be technology savvy to make a doctor’s appointment and even then there’s no guarantee you will get to see one. Many GP practices have replaced the walk-in surgery with something called ‘triage’. General Practice is in the process of being de-skilled. They’re being replaced with less skilled medical staff like nursing and anaesthetist practitioner’s, nursing oractitioner’s, physiotherapists, and people who work as chemists. What’s the point of having GP’s if they avoid face-to-face contact with their patients. Many of them are self-employed, overpaid, and a waste of taxpayer’s money. The doctor’s and nurses who work in NHS hospitals have no choice but to treat people face-to-face and deserve our respect.
Congratulations and very well deserved this is the best doctors I have ever had in my entire life service is amazing all doctors listen to your needs and nothing is to much trouble very well done ????????