View the results of our 2012 Patient Survey

We constantly strive to improve the service that we provide to our patients and strongly value all forms of feedback. Our annual patient survey plays a crucial role in identifying the areas in which we are performing well and also areas where we could improve.

Method

All patients attending our practice from August 2012 to November 2012 were invited to participate in our survey. The survey was carried out in the form of an e-survey with participants receiving an e-mail containing a direct link to the survey form. All responses were assessed in an anonymous fashion.

Survey Results

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General Comments

• Been attending the practice for many years, and would highly recommend it.
• I have no complaints about the dental nurses but I don't think I have ever spoken to one.
• They always seem very quiet and shy and seem to be quietly working in the background. I always find the reception staff friendly and helpful. I have complete trust in my dentist and have always received good treatment.
• A very friendly and professional service and I especially appreciate having a reminder that my appointments are due, thank you.
• Have always had excellent experience at Diamond Court. Would thoroughly recommend your service to anyone. Thank you.
• I am very satisfied with all aspects of the practice.
• I suggest the cost of seeing Hygienist is reduced to encourage more use. I would prefer partners of NHS patients be also allowed to register instead of having to attend other practices.
• Contacting patients via text is an excellent way of communicating with us to remind us of our next appointment.
• In the past I have never enjoyed coming to a dentist for any reason, this was my first visit to the practice, and I must say I was very impressed with all of the practice method of working. You made my visit very enjoyable.
• I am a longstanding patient of the practice and have always found them helpful and reassuring at times when I needed it. No complaints!!
• I have been a patient at Diamond Court for many years. I have always had excellent service. The treatment I receive from Jamie Denholm has always been absolutely first class. I used to be a very nervous patient but now feel relaxed about coming to the Dentist for my check-up or treatments. The waiting area has been improved over the years. My only comment would be that it would be nice if a daily newspaper was available to read whilst waiting. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to excellent service.
• Excellent practice. Have recommended friends who are very pleased with their treatment. Keep up the good work.
• Everything is very professional yet still very friendly.
• Treatment always superb from both Jamie and the nurses, my only gripe is that  appointments seem to get changed a little too often.
• Very happy with all aspects of my care at the practice.
• Having the radio blaring out whilst waiting in reception I found very annoying.
• The emergency telephone no. was not obtainable through the phone no. given which was very worrying. The emergency no. was given out on the answer phone but when the no. was actually rung it just beeped. My husband called over 30 times.
• I find my visits to the surgery friendly, efficient and relaxing. I consider myself fortunate to have such an excellent and efficiently run dental surgery on my doorstep it is very much appreciated.
• I've used this dentist for the last 50+ years and always been happy with the treatment and the premises. I feel confident that if I did have an issue I could speak to staff and would be listened too.

Discussion

The results of the survey were extremely encouraging with a strong majority (>90%) of respondents selecting “good” or “excellent” for each question. In addition, 96% stated that they had been treated with an “excellent” level of  dignity and respect during their visits to the practice.  Only 4 respondents (7%) had previously had an appointment with our patient care co-ordinator. Thirty-eight respondents (68%) weren’t aware that the practice had a website. Several respondents took the opportunity to provide specific feedback in the general comments section of the survey and again the majority of the feedback was positive. One patient found the radio in the waiting room too loud and felt that this was an unnecessary distraction. However, in the past we have found that without a radio in the waiting room, discussions can be heard from the downstairs  surgeries which compromises patient confidentially. Another patient had experienced problems with the NHS emergency on-call phone number given on our answer phone system. This has been fully investigated and whilst the number is correct, it would appear that the NHS emergency centre at Scarsdale doesn’t have an answer phone. This means that when the centre is closed the phone line goes dead. We have contacted the Primary Care Trust to inform them of this issue and so hopefully this problem will be rectified in the future.

Action Plan

1. Increase awareness of the practice website by displaying the website address within the practice.
2. Increase awareness of our patient care co-ordinator sessions.