What are PPGs?
The first Patient Participation Group was set up by a GP in 1972 and 41% of general practices in England now have a PPG. Generally made up of a group of volunteer patients, the practice manager and one or more of the GPs from the practice, they meet on a regular basis to discuss the services on offer, and how improvements can be made for the benefit of patients and the practice.
The beauty of PPGs is that there is no set way in which they work - the aims and work of each group entirely depends on local needs - but they are have the aim of making sure that their practice puts the patient, and improving health, at the heart of everything it does.
Visit the case studies section of this site for examples of some of the initiatives that PPGs are running across the country.