Patient Participation Group

 

The Lonsdale Medical Centre Patient Participation Group (PPG) was formed in 2010 and is an independent body which acts as an interface between the patients and the Practice staff.

Our PPG experienced a revival in 2024 after nearly a two-year hiatus and now has eleven committee members who meet quarterly.  We also have a 'virtual' membership who receive newsletters and surveys.  There are currently 235 members on our mailing list.  Please contact the Patient Services Manager if you would like to join committee membership or the virtual PPG.

The aim of Lonsdale Medical Centre PPG is to give patients of the Surgery an opportunity to become involved with planning and developing services, suggesting improvements and to take an active interest in their own healthcare.  Please see the PPG Constitution for more information.

If you are interested in being involved with the Patient Participation Group, please let our receptionists at the Surgery have your contact details or contact us via the online form

Aims

  • To facilitate good relations between the Practice and patients by communicating patients’ experiences, interests and concerns and by providing feed back to the Practice on current procedures and proposed developments.
  • To contribute to the continuous improvement of services offered by the Practice and ensuring that patient information is both current and user friendly.
  • To provide practical support to the Practice, including fund raising to supplement the operation of the Practice and the Group.
  • To help patients to take more responsibility for their own health by identifying relevant information sources and agencies which are available within the National Health Service and outside it.
  • To feed back to appropriate bodies within the NHS and local authorities patients’ experiences of the health related services they have received and of their reaction to proposed changes within those services.
  • To feed back to appropriate bodies within the NHS and local authorities patients’ experiences of the health related services they have received and of their reaction to proposed changes within those services.

Constitution

Title

1. The name of the patient participation group of the Practice based at the Lonsdale Medical Centre, Tunbridge Wells, will be “The Lonsdale Patients Group”.

Constitution

2. The initial Annual General Meeting’s first business will be to adopt this constitution, subject to any amendments that may be agreed by a majority of those Members attending. Thereafter, any amendment will only be made if a written proposal is given to the Secretary not less than thirty days before the next Annual General Meeting and is subsequently approved by a majority of those attending that meeting.

Membership

3. All Patients registered with the Practice will be considered as members of the group.

Meetings

4. An Annual General Meeting will be held each calendar year, which all Members will be eligible to attend and to vote on any resolution.

5. The agenda for the AGM will include the election of Committee Members, to be determined by ballot, chosen from a list of Members who have signified their willingness to stand for election, submitted in writing to the Secretary at least ten calendar days prior to the meeting. Their submission may include a supporting statement, not more than sixty words long, of their interests, which will be included on the agenda.

6. The holding of the AGM will be advertised by notice displayed in the Surgery, on the Practice’s website and by e-mail to those Members who have agreed to the use of this as a means of communication.

7. The Committee will be comprise of not more than ten Members, of whom eight will be elected at the AGM to serve for a term of two years. However, only the four Members who receive the most votes at the initial AGM will serve for a term of two years, the other Members elected will serve only for one year in order to allow an annual rotation. The Committee will be allowed to appoint two Members selected to ensure that, as far as is practicable, all sections of the registered patients are represented or to fill any casual vacancy; each to serve until the next AGM.

8. The Committee will meet at least four times between consecutive AGMs. A quorum of four Members will be required before a formal meeting can proceed.

9. At its first meeting following an AGM, the Committee will elect a Chairman, a Vice Chairman and a Treasurer. If the Practice has been unable to provide a Secretary, the Committee will also appoint a Secretary.

10. Decisions of a Committee shall be determined by a show of hands, unless a member requires a ballot to be held. In the case of a tie the Chairmen will have a casting vote.

11. The Committee may appoint a Sub Committee to consider a particular issue and to nominate its Leader. The Sub Committee will report back to the next main Committee meeting.

12. The Committee may co-opt a non- voting Member to serve until the next the next AGM, whom it considers can provide expert knowledge or skills that are not otherwise available to the Committee.

13. The Committee may affiliate the Group to, or join, other bodies whose aims are consistent with its own.

Practice

14. The Practice will not be bound by any decision of the Group affecting the operation of the Practice, unless otherwise agreed.

15. The Practice will be able to present items for consideration by the Group and to make a submission in support, either in writing or by a representative.

Agenda

16. The Secretary will circulate an agenda to each Committee Member and to the Practice not less than seven days before each meeting. The Agenda will be drawn up by the Secretary in conjunction with the Chairman and approved by the latter.

17. Committee Members may put forward items for inclusion in the next agenda, together with a short statement describing the substance of the item, which would be reproduced in the Agenda if the item is accepted. The Practice will have a similar right.

Minutes

18. As soon as is practical after a Committee meeting, the Secretary will produce a draft set of minutes, which will be submitted to the Chairman for approval. The minutes will include, where appropriate, a synopsis of the discussion on items and record any decision taken or action required. Once approved, a copy will be provided to the Practice and will be shown on the Practice’s website. A copy of the Minutes will be sent to each Committee Member with the Agenda for the next meeting.

Finance

19. The Treasurer will be responsible for any income or expenditure and will maintain appropriate accounts. A summary of the accounts will be submitted to the Annual General Meeting for approval. A copy will be given to the Practice.

Dissolution

20. If two thirds of the Committee decide, for whatever reason, that the Group should be dissolved, a Special General Meeting will be called at which a similar majority of the Members voting will be required to confirm the dissolution. Any assets held will be returned to the Practice after all outstanding liabilities have been satisfied.

PPG Members

  • Oliver (Chair)
  • Alex (Secretary)
  • Adele
  • Anne
  • Caroline
  • Dogan
  • Martin
  • Sam
  • Timothy

Please direct any PPG queries to the Patient Services Manager

Latest PPG Meeting Minutes

  • Date: 5 October 2026
  • Time: 4.30pm to 6pm
  • Venue: Lonsdale Medical Centre
  • Chair: OM
  • Minutes taken by: AW

Attendees

  • RG – Patient Services Manager
  • SG – Receptionist and administrator
  • AW – PPG Member 
  • AL – PPG Member
  • CS – PPG Member
  • OM – PPG Member and Chair 
  • TH – PPG Member

Apologies

  • AS
  • DD

Next meeting

  • 11th January 2027 
 

1. Welcome

OM welcomed everyone to the meeting. 

RG set up a Teams link for the meeting and will check with DD for any connection issues.  

RG had not heard from AS who has previously acted as the medical representative on the PPG. Members agreed that a clinical representative, such as a GP or practice nurse, would be very helpful. 

Action

RG will liaise with AS over ongoing membership and see if a clinician in the practice wishes to join PPG meetings (which could be on a rotational basis). 

 

2. Matters arising

RG confirmed that she had spoken to reception staff about PPG members’ preference to enter the building as visitors without needing to scan the QR code. Members had not been asked to scan the code today.  

 

3. PPG looking ahead

There was an engaging discussion about the purpose of the PPG and next steps. 

  • RG confirmed that it is a contractual requirement for GP practices to establish and maintain a PPG but a PPG has value beyond this obligation. The PPG is seen by Lonsdale Medical Centre as providing valuable information, insight and feedback. 
  • RG reported that in the past several members had left as they thought that PPG meetings could become a talking shop. Progress can seem slow at times since the NHS as a system has many constraints and protocols.  
  • The PPG is a mechanism to hold the practice to account and suggest improvements to benefit patients.
  • AW suggested that the PPG would benefit from new members who represent the diverse patient population, for example, younger patients. 
  • It was agreed that one of the core functions of the PPG is to receive information giving an oversight of complaints received. RG reported that complaints were increasing nationally across general practice with many written using artificial intelligence. 
  • The PPG will receive the annual patient survey results and three monthly reports of friends and family test data. 
  • The PPG will make themselves available to Care Quality Commission inspectors if the practice is required to undergo an inspection. 
  • The PPG will review and comment on policies affecting patients in advance of their publication
  • The PPG can develop projects that support local patients. AW referred to an active Ageing without Children group in East Kent but none in West Kent, and that she would be interested in supporting the development of such a group. Paramount Place could be approached to provide a room free of charge. 
  • The PPG can suggest innovative solutions to improve patient understanding and self-care. CS proposed someone in the practice a patient could see immediately after an appointment when needing clarity or comfort especially after bad news. The support person could have a door with a poster with ‘talk to me.’ This would not be for every patient but perhaps those living alone without family support or where medical news may have been difficult to take in. Volunteers acting as befrienders/a listening ear was one option. RG stated that any volunteer would need a DBS check and to maintain patient confidentiality. The GP may not have written up the notes on the system by the time the patient was ready to leave the practice so any follow-up would need to come later. There was also a risk of volunteers giving medical information when not trained to do so. Many GP practices have a care co-ordinator that patients with more complex needs could see for support. Follow-up with an available staff member for patients left feeling confused or overwhelmed after an appointment would be an excellent initiative, though perhaps not realistic within current resources. RG as Patient Services Manager is available to hear from patients needing further help or information after an appointment and to liaise with clinical colleagues as needed.
  • PPG members agreed it was important to consider the different needs of patients, that while a measure in the national patient survey is that patients are clear about the next steps following the appointment, neurodivergent patients may need longer to process and agree a course of action.  

Action

  • RG to consider further how additional support/follow up for patients after an appointment could work.
  • RG to ask if her role should be better promoted, including in a future PPG newsletter. 
  • PPG to look into the development of peer support groups/projects to benefit patients. 
 

4. Increasing membership

  • RG shared small pamphlets created to promote joining the PPG. RG had given these out to three patients at the flu clinic, though had stood for one hour and talked to over 30 patients in relation to the friends and families test (FFT)
  • CS offered to spend time in the waiting room talking to patients about joining the PPG. RG suggested that this may feel too much for patients who were feeling unwell.
  • CS and AL both offered to promote the PPG at the flu clinics in 2027. 

Action

RG to explore whether an advert to join the PPG could appear on the video loop or on the totem/kiosk. 

 

5. PPG newsletter

AW offered to produce a newsletter once there is enough content. RG continues to update Facebook though engagement is low. 

 

6. Practice news 

  • Dr Sofia Bertoni is now carrying out six sessions per week. 
  • Practice list has decreased from just over 8000 patients to 7910. This drop is likely due to the ongoing NHS England list cleansing exercise. Practices are prompted to contact patients who have not made contact or been active for 18 months to check that they are still living at their address. Attempts at contact are made using text, phone calls and a letter. If patients do not respond within three months then they are removed from the list. Removals affect the practice’s income. There are many instances nationally where practices need to re-register patients having removed them due to this exercise. Patient contact, removals and re-registration all add to the practice’s workload.  PPG members disliked the term list cleansing since dehumanising patients on the list. 
 

7. Complaints 

RG reported a drop in FFT in the last quarter perhaps reflecting holiday periods. There were 44 FFT, with all but one responding very good and the other was good. 

Generally, complaints have one of these themes: poor communication, delay to referral or treatment, delay prescribing. A recent complaint related to the practice declining to perform blood tests requested by a private provider. While PPG members understood the theme of this complaint, members did say that it is far more common now to find that patients will see private consultant physicians as a one off. NHS secondary care waiting lists are very lengthy - in some specialities the wait is over eight months for first appointment. Patients may turn to private provision out of desperation. RG confirmed that requests from private providers were considered on a case-by-case basis but would usually follow the conclusion of any private consultations or investigations. 

RG is changing the complaints policy/leaflet to reflect the new name for the Health Service Ombudsman. This service is now known as the Public Service Ombudsman. This service would act as the final stage for a complaint. 

 

8. Patient records

AW highlighted that NHS England had written to providers about the need to suspend staff during investigations if there were suspicions of inappropriate access to patient records. AW thought there need to be safeguards for staff too as many staff work in general practice and access patient records as part of their roles. 

RG confirmed that staff accessed patient records for a range of legitimate reasons related to care. Any data breach of patient information would as procedure be reported to Dr Corney, the data lead in the practice, and to the Information Commissioners Office. 

 

9. Mental health navigators

The two Mental Health Navigators have made an open offer to attend a PPG meeting. Members agreed that the practice is already promoting this service through posters in the waiting room and in reception, and not to invite the navigators at this stage. In future the PPG may choose to host a drop in event for patients to meet the navigators or a ‘question time’ session. 

 

10. Any other business

AW suggested that practice staff need to have an awareness of the difficulty of reaching some clinics in West Kent for patients who cannot drive and have no family support. There are community clinics in Borough Green even though there is no direct bus service and the journey would involve three trains. RG confirmed that she does try to promote local voluntary patient transport services.