Patient survey ranks best and worst Fenland GP surgeries

The figures also expose big differences in how easily patients can contact surgeries and how quickly they get a clear plan for what happens next.

Trinity Surgery in Wisbech sits near the top of the local table, with 52% of patients rating their overall experience as “very good” and 32% as “fairly good”, giving a combined satisfaction score of 84 %.

Nearly nine in 10 patients who did get through say they knew what the next step in dealing with their request would be, and most report the practice dealt with their issue within a day or two.

Mercheford House, in March, part of the Fenland PCN, also posts an 84% good‑experience score, backed by strong contact‑experience data.

A stark divide has emerged between the best and worst GP practices serving Fenland according to the latest GP Patient Survey, with satisfaction ranging from the mid‑80s to barely over 60%. (Image: PA MEDIA)

More than eight in 10 patients say their call was answered or they were able to make contact, and around four in five report that they knew the next step once they had spoken to the practice.

Ramsey Health Centre matches these headline satisfaction levels while performing strongly on access.

Over 70% of patients say they last contacted the practice within the previous three months, and around nine in 10 who made contact say they were told clearly what would happen next, usually on the same day or the day after.

Fenland Group Practice, which includes Manea, Wimblington, Doddington, and Ramsey surgeries, and Riverside Practice in March, occupy a crowded middle ground.

At Fenland Group, 77% of patients describe their overall experience as good, and roughly three‑quarters say they understood the next step after they contacted the practice.

But the contact data shows a noticeable minority who either struggled to get through or were left unclear about what would happen next.

Riverside Practice tells a similar story. About three in four patients rate their experience as good, yet only around eight in 10 report that they knew the next step after contacting the surgery, and a significant share say it took more than a day to get clarity.

For both Riverside and Fenland Group Practice, the figures suggest that while the care itself is broadly well regarded, access and communication issues are dragging down scores.

North Brink Practice in Wisbech falls slightly behind this middle tier, with 74% describing their overall experience as good.

Just over 80% of those who got through say they knew the next step in their care, but a higher‑than‑average proportion report being held in phone queues or needing to try multiple routes to make contact.

Cornerstone Practice, in March, records a 73% good‑experience score.

Its contact data shows that while most patients still phone the practice, nearly one in five report being held in a queue or needing to try again, and only around four in five say they clearly understood the next step once they got through.

Clarkson Surgery in Wisbech fares worse on both satisfaction and contact experience.

Overall, just 69% of patients describe their experience as good, and only a little over four in five say they knew what would happen next after contacting the practice.

A sizeable minority report calls being held in queues, not answered, or abandoned, which helps explain why more than a quarter of patients rate their contact experience as poor or very poor.

George Clare Surgery in Chatteris posts a 64% good‑experience score, one of the lowest in Fenland.

Although around seven in 10 patients say they contacted the practice in the last six months, fewer than nine in 10 of those who got through report that they knew the next step, and many say it took more than a day to get a clear plan.

The survey also shows higher‑than‑average use of alternative routes such as pharmacies, NHS 111 and self‑care when patients cannot make contact.

Parson Drove Surgery records the weakest results in the Fenland and Wisbech patch.

Only 61% of patients say their overall experience is good, and the contact figures show why: while most patients still manage to get through, a significant minority report calls being held in a queue, not answered or abandoned, and most say they were given a clear next step after making contact.

Taken together, the survey results show a spread from 84% satisfaction at Trinity, Mercheford House and Ramsey down to just 61% at Parson Drove, with contact experiences closely tracking those scores.

Practices that answer calls promptly and explain the next steps clearly tend to record higher overall satisfaction, while those with long queues, missed calls, and unclear follow‑up see far more patients rating their experience as poor.

For NHS leaders and practice managers, the message is blunt: in a largely rural area where many residents rely heavily on their GP for access to wider health services, it is not enough to provide good clinical care once patients are in the building.

The way surgeries handle phone lines, online requests and next‑step explanations is becoming a key dividing line between the best and worst‑rated practices across Fenland.

Best on contact and next‑step clarity

• Trinity Surgery (Wisbech)
  High satisfaction (84% good overall); nearly 9 in 10 patients say they clearly knew the next step after contacting the practice, usually on the same day.
• Mercheford House (Fenland PCN)
  84% good overall experience; strong phone access with most calls answered and around 4 in 5 patients given a clear plan for what happens next.
• Ramsey Health Centre (Fenland PCN)
  84% good overall; about 9 in 10 patients who made contact say they understood the next step, with most requests dealt with within one to two days.

Worst on contact and next‑step clarity

• Clarkson Surgery (Wisbech)
  Only 69% rate their overall experience as good; noticeable levels of queued, abandoned or unanswered calls and more than 1 in 5 patients are unclear about next steps.
• George Clare Surgery (Chatteris)
  64% good overall; a significant minority report delays in getting a clear plan and turn to pharmacies, NHS 111 or self‑care when they cannot get through.
• Parson Drove Surgery (Wisbech St Mary)
  61% good overall, the lowest in the patch; more patients report call‑queue problems and uncertainty about what happens next, with some giving up or doing nothing.