All appointments can be made by phone by calling at 8.30am or online (for all apointments which do not require a triage). Due to the large number of patients under our practice the phone lines can be very busy, particularly at 8.30am. During Covid we increased our phone capacity by making changes to our phone network and adding capacity to our office - these changes are now premanent and have improved the efficiency of the practice to take calls
GP consultations can be conducted over the phone, face to face, or via video using an app on the phone. Occasionally, we may ask you to submit images where the patient prefers to have a phone consultation. Please avoid sending images which reveal any private areas including genitalia / chest area for females.
There are three types of doctor’s appointments you may book:
SAME DAY APPOINTMENTS. These appointments are for people who are ill that day and should not be used for the management of long term complaints.
ADVANCED BOOKINGS. These can usually be booked around a week in advance. These appointments are for medication reviews, management of chronic disease, the review of routine test results and other things that do not need to be dealt with at short notice.
URGENT/ EMERGENCY APPOINTMENTS. These are available when all routine appointments for the day are booked up. They are for MEDICAL EMERGENCIES ONLY. The receptionist will pass your details to the doctor and the doctor will decide whether to see you, have a telephone consultation with you, prescribe you medicine or give advice. Please note: the receptionist is instructed to ask the reason for the emergency so your symptoms can be assessed accordingly. It may be we can direct you towards a different service which may be able to help quicker (i.e. A&E). The reception staff are NOT responsible for deciding who is seen. This is the doctor’s decision.
If you cannot keep your appointment, we politely ask you cancel well in advance so another patient can use them.
Please note: you have the right to request a particular practitioner (GP) here at the surgery. You may be offered an appointment with an alternate regular GP / locum GP if he/she is unavailable.
One Problem Per Appointment Please
Below are the reasons clinicians can only focus on one problem per consultation:
- Too many problems distract the clinician
- Clinician may be more likely to rush
- Ten minutes is not long at all
- Other patients will be waiting
- Clinician needs to focus to detect serious disease early
- Clinician need time to write up notes
- A limited resource should be used with care
- Serious illness may be missed
Severe Emergencies
If you are confronted by a serious problem such as difficulty breathing, severe chest pain, severe bleeding, signs of a stroke or sepsis, call an ambulance immediately (Tel: 999) before calling the surgery for extra help.