More than one in ten Havering residents avoid seeking medical help because they find it too difficult to get through to their GP, according to a new survey.

The Recorder is publishing tables showing how 33 GP surgeries in Havering scored with their patients in the 2021 NHS patient survey.

The annual survey, conducted by Ipsos MORI on behalf of NHS England, sees a questionnaire sent to two million people in England.

This year, approximately 850,000 of them replied.

In the North East London Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) area, which includes Havering, just under 32,500 people completed the survey.

Here are some outcomes compared to the national picture.

Overall satisfaction

Nationally, an average of 83 per cent of people said their overall experience of their GP surgery was good.

In the North East London CCG region, it was 77 per cent.

In Havering, half of surgeries – 17 out of 33 – scored in line with or above the national average.

The number one surgery, with a score of 99 per cent, was the Cranham Village Surgery.

In second place was the Rahman and Tsoi surgery in Stanley Road, Hornchurch, with a score of 96 per cent.

Upminster Bridge Surgery came in third, with a 95 per cent overall satisfaction rate.

At the bottom of the table was the Berwick Surgery in Rainham, with a score of 56 per cent.

Telephone access

Across England, 68 per cent of people said they found it easy to get through to their surgery by telephone.

In the North East London CCG area, it was 64 per cent.

In Havering, 18 GP practices were in line with or better than the national average.

Rahman and Tsoi again scored well, topping the league table for this measure with a score of 96 per cent.

Harlow Road Surgery in Rainham came second, with 94 per cent.

In third place, with 93 per cent, was Dr PM Patel in Suttons Avenue, Hornchurch.

At the bottom of the league table was Maylands Healthcare in Upper Rainham Road, Hornchurch, where just 29 per cent of surveyed patients said they found it easy to get through on the phone.

Avoiding healthcare

One problem highlighted by the survey was that difficulty making contact with a surgery can deter people from seeking medical help.

Nationally, 11 per cent of people said they had avoided making a GP appointment because they found it too difficult.

In Havering, more than one in three surgeries were above that national average.

The highest was Dr M Fateh’s Practice, with bases in Dagenham and Rainham, where 25 per cent of surveyed patients said they had avoided trying to make appointments because they found it too difficult.

What local NHS bosses say

The North East London CCG did not comment specifically on the Havering results, but did offer a statement on the results for the whole region – which also includes Barking and Dagenham, the City of London, Hackney, Newham, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest.

A spokesperson said the CCG was happy with the overall results of the 2021 survey.

“Despite it being an incredibly challenging year for everyone, especially in terms of the impact the pandemic has had on how people access their GP, more than three quarters of people reported their experience of general practice in north east London as ‘good’ overall, which is a testament to the ongoing efforts of our GPs and primary care team,” they said.

“These results give us valuable insight in helping us to support our GP practices to be as good as they possibly can be and inform our primary care priorities overall, and we recognise there is room for improvement, so we will be working to address the issues raised, including how we can improve access to appointments.”

The Recorder approached Berwick Surgery, Maylands Healthcare and Dr M Fateh’s Practice for comment, but did not receive a response.