General Practitioners: Greenwich

(asked on 21st November 2018) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has made of the progress of Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group towards setting up Patient Participation Groups as proposed in its Patient and Public Engagement Strategy (2017 – 2020); how many such groups have been set up; and if he will make a statement.


Answered by
Steve Brine Portrait
Steve Brine
This question was answered on 26th November 2018

In May 2017 Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) carried out a review of the 35 general practitioner (GP) practices in the borough. This showed that 24 (68%) practices had fully functional Patient Participation Groups (PPGs).

In May 2018 Greenwich CCG undertook a further review which showed that 31 (88%) practices now had a fully functional PPG.

NHS England does not provide guidance about whether community groups can become PPGs. PPGs are specific to GP practices and included in the GP contract as a way in which practices can engage with their practice population. CCGs should engage more widely than PPGs and we would expect them to connect with and engage with community and voluntary groups in their local communities. This is part of their duty to involve patients and the public and is covered in the guidance for CCGs last published in 2017. Greenwich CCG welcomes engagement opportunities with patient community groups to receive feedback on health services commissioned by the CCG. This would be outside of the formal remit of a Patient Participation Group as defined within national guidance.

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