Patient Participation Group

Location: SMA Medical Centre, 693-695 High Road, Leyton, E10 6RA

• Patients: 14 patient attendees in total (patient attendees not named due to GDPR)
• Andy Agathocleous (AA) and Mumtaz Patel (MP), co-chairs
• Dr Patel, Lead GP and Hurley Group Partner
• Nick Christou (NC), Senior Practice Manager

Minutes of previous meeting

Copies of the minutes were issued to all meeting attendees and are available to all patients on the PPG area of the SMA practice website.

The minutes of the last meeting were reviewed and accepted by all the attendees of today's meeting as a true record.

Action: (NC) The minutes from today’s meeting to be uploaded onto the PPG area of the SMA practice website and a hard-copy to be made available in the reception area of the practice.

PPG chairs update - MP and AA

• A live demonstration was shown to the patients at today's PPG meeting on how to navigate the SMA practice website to locate the PPG area and locate today's and historical meeting minutes.
• The PPG chairs are recommending that all SMA patients obtain a password from the practice so that they can access and log into Patient Access to view their medical records and order repeat medications.
• SMA patients can communicate directly with the PPG chairs by sending them an email regarding non-health-related topics relating to the practice or NHS. The practice will not be able to access the emails you send to the PPG chairs.
• Blood test appointments can also be booked through Swiftque or by calling FedNet directly on 0208 519 3999.
• Patients who are unable to attend face to face PPG meetings will be able to join an on-line hybrid meeting.

SMA practice update - Nick Christou (NC) and DR Sanjay Patel (SP)

Dr. Patel hosted a question and answer session allowing patients the opportunity to ask questions on health topics and any concerns they have with the day to day running of the practice.

• Premises -The new clinical room has been completed bringing the total number of clinical rooms to nine.
• Patients that require urgent same day face-to-face GP appointments are seen but not necessarily by the same GP.
• 183 smear tests and 58 child inoculations have been completed at the practice.

Doctors:

• Dr. Sanjay Patel (Male) - Lead GP & Partner is at the practice on Monday and Wednesday afternoons providing clinical sessions.
• Dr Shehla Qureshi (Female) - Associate Partner
• Dr Rajee Venkat (Female) - Salaried GP
• Dr Arif Saqba (Female) - Salaried GP
• Dr Amna Naeem, (Female) - Salaried GP
• Dr Sudam Ghosh (Male) - Contracted GP
• Dr Humera Qureshi (Female) - Contracted GP
• SMA is a training practice and we have one ST2 and one ST3 trainee doctors at the practice.
• Practice Nurses - Josephine Laungani, Tina Abraham and Health Care Assistant Donna Westwood.
• Pharmacists - Uma Solanky, Saima Malek, Shahid Chopdat and Aiysha Hussain (will be returning from maternity leave in the late summer).
• Paramedic - Ashley Tinham, Social Prescriber - Zakia Ali, First Contact Physiotherapist - Lipi Halder.
• Patients with learning disabilities are continually reviewed.
• Patients should only request repeat medication they require.

Action: Patients to complete the National Patient Survey if they receive it in the post.

Action: Dr Patel to attend our next meeting.

Healthwatch update - AA

The meeting was held on 4 June 2026 at Walthamstow Library.

Healthwatch reviewed the visibility and apparent activity of Patient Participation Groups (PPGs) across GP practices in Waltham Forest through a practice website review, or direct telephone contact with practices.

I have listed some of the key audit findings:

• The review identified known active PPGs at 26 of the borough’s 39 GP practices.
• Fourteen practice websites contained meeting minutes or reports.
• Only five showed evidence of meetings or activity during 2025 or 2026.
• Outdated website information.
• Limited evidence of ongoing activity.
• Inconsistent visibility of PPGs to patients.
• Reception staff often knew they had a PPG but little other information.
• Practice managers unavailable; only put through to one.
• Whilst virtually all GP practice websites had a dedicated PPG page, there was very little up-to-date information regarding minutes of meetings and no evidence of other activities.
   
• The SMA Medical Centre website has the best PPG pages including photos of the two co-chairs as well as minutes and a join-up form.

Next PPG health awareness day

Patients who attended today's meeting were given the opportunity to provide ideas as to what they want to see at the next PPG health awareness day:

• A GP to be present.
• Practice nurses to carry out blood pressure, sugar level tests, conduct smear tests and child immunisations.
• Specialist organisations to be invited such as Stroke UK, Diabetes UK, British Heart Foundation, Mesopheliania Charity, Prostrate Cancer, Sickle cell.
• Patient training on how to access your medical records and how to navigate the SMA website to the PPG area.
• The PPG chairs, MP & AA, would welcome patient volunteers getting involved in helping on the day of the Health Awareness Event.
• Dr Patel to present a blood pressure, hypertension session.

Actions: NC to invite specialist organistions. MP & AA to organise and produce a poster for the Health Awareness Day scheduled for Saturday 18 July 2026.

Work in progress - AA and NC

1. E-consult timings are now 8am to 6:30pm, 5 days a week. No plans at present to extend e-consult timings as the practice already provides substantially more availability for e-consults than most GP practices.
2. Negotiations are ongoing with the practice manager to reinstate online pre-booked face to face GP appointments and messaging services.
3. Why are promotional events such as PPG invites, patient surveys, pick up blood test forms, submit blood pressure readings and vaccination text message reminders to patients being recorded as consultations on the patient's medical records.
4. The practice to be able to provide blood tests to SMA patients - Update not possible at present as the practice has no way of transporting the blood samples to phlebotomy at Whipps Cross hospital.

Action: NC to provide further updates to points 1 to 4 at the next PPG meeting.

Next PPG meeting

Thank you all again for all your outstanding support and contribution into today’s meeting especially to Dr Patel.

We look forward to seeing you all at the SMA medical centre for the Health Awareness Event on Saturday 18 July 2026 12pm to 4pm.

AA