Patients have given their views on public health services in the county as part of the first independent survey into care across Gloucestershire.
Healthwatch has taken up the mantel of a regional watchdog into care quality in the wake of the Mid-Staffordshire health trust scandal and subsequent Francis Report.
In its first year of operation, Healthwatch has developed strong links with patient groups, commissioners and care providers.
The group has helped with patient information, as well as providing a sounding board for complaints and data collection to help improve services.
Healthwatch Gloucestershire has been cited as one of the top two organisations in its ability to influence strategy by acting as a mouthpiece for patients.
Currently, there are 152 regional Healthwatch organisations acting on behalf of patients across England.
Chairman, Dr Claire Feehily, said the group is now looking to build on its early success.
"We function effectively as a vital component in the wider health, social care and well-being landscape and are an exemplar in the post-Francis world of safety and quality," she said.
"We began the year with an existing group of committed and knowledgeable staff, members and volunteers.
"From that base we have been able to extend membership and lay activity to support a range of developments and partner projects. We are in a very strong position to inform and contribute to the community based focus of future commissioning intentions."
The main gripe of patients picked up through consultation events and drop-in sessions across the county over the past 12 months included a criticism of Primary Care Services.
Almost a quarter of the 648 comments made to Healthwatch were critical of GP appointments, concerns over restructuring of surgeries or problems with continuity of care.
Unscheduled care also came in for a battering from patients.
A large proportion of the 72 negative comments concerned the introduction of NHS 111 in March 2013. Patients complained of inappropriate responses and referrals, or call handlers 'blindly' following a script.
The takeover of non-emergency patient transport services by Arriva in December also came in for criticism.
Healthwatch received complaints about missed appointments or patients resorting to booking their own appointments for hospital treatment.
Following the poor service reports from Arriva, a spokesman there said: "We are aware that some patients waited longer than they should and we sincerely apologise for any distress caused.
"During the first working week of the contract, ATSL received a significantly high volume of calls, many of them enquiries, due to the fact that the contract was new."
Dr Feehily added: "The aim of conducting out business in public was brave and has brought challenges to our thinking.
"Nevertheless, our new board is determined to conduct itself in a away that is open to public scrutiny."
Mental health care was criticised for a lack of continuity between police, GPs and hospital services.
And there were 120 negative comments out of 157 about social care. Patients had concerns over the state of some care homes and how the elderly were being treated.
But Carers Gloucestershire and the Positive Caring Programme came in for praise from those who had experienced them, as did cancer charities Macmillan, Sue Ryder and Maggie's.
Other general comments delivered to Healthwatch were calls for a return to matron led hospital wards.
