HOW DO I...
MAKE AN APPOINTMENT?

Introduction

Appointment booking is the main cause of dissatisfaction highlighted in our annual patient survey.  The following explains how the system works and why we operate it this way.  We can only respond to complaints if the standards described here have not been met.

The appointment service we provide

The Primary Care Trust has a contract with the practice to provide a service from 8.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday excluding public holidays. They also contract with us to provide an additional surgery for pre-booked patients from 6.30pm to 8.15pm on Monday and Thursday evenings. Two GPs are available at these times. They have separately contracted with an 'out of hours' service provider to cover more serious conditions which require the patient to see a GP between 6.00pm and 8.00am each day and at weekends and bank holidays.

Why must I ring or attend the surgery at 8.00am to get an appointment?

Some of our patients complain that they must ring at exactly 8.00am to get an appointment and when they do our phones are constantly engaged. You do need to ring early if you require a same day appointment on the other hand if you need to pre-book an appointment up to two weeks in advance you do not have to ring the surgery at 8.00am; you can ring anytime during the day to do this. We have three reception staff ready to book pre-bookable appointments and three secretarial staff to deal with same day appointment requests from 8.00am each day. Our telephone system stacks up to 10 calls at any one time. One of the members of the reception team sits at the front desk and takes bookings for pre-bookable appointments from patients who arrive there. She also deals with other patient requests such as prescription requests and collection of test samples etc. To ensure we can deal with urgent appointment requests and clear calls quicker we would appreciate it if patients only visit the surgery at this time for absolutely essential reasons.

Receptionists must take patient details, ask which health professional the patient would like to see and agree a time for an appointment, call back or visit. In the first few minutes after the phone lines are open it is likely that patients will receive the engaged tone. Repeat prescription requests for housebound patients, pre-bookable appointments and requests for telephone calls/consultations or patient visits can all be accommodated after 9.00am.

Having more receptionists available to answer early calls would not solve the problem as there are only the same number of appointments available and they would simply be allocated faster. We have made more appointments available by employing a salaried GP and training our nurse practitioner so she can take on a more complex caseload.

Same Day Appointments

Every day we allocate a number of slots for same day appointments to each GP.  Requests for same day appointments are dealt with by your registered GPs secretary.  She will then decide if you need to be seen that day or if you need a telephone consultation or visit.  Patients can help us and themselves by ringing for same day appointments between 8.00 - 10.30am.

Pre-booked Appointments

Every day we allocate a number of pre-bookable slots to each GP.  These are available for two weeks in advance of the current day.  Extending this period beyond two weeks results in higher numbers of patients who do not attend or who cancel at the last minute.  We generally try to make appointments at mutually convenient times of the day and allocate pre-bookable slots if they are available. 

On-line Appointments

We are now making a limited amount of appointments available over the internet. Please contact our reception staff for information on this service.  A link to the on-line webpage is shown on the notice board of our Practice webpage.

What if I really must see my own GP and there are no appointments?

Wherever possible the GPs like to keep to their own lists of patients because they believe that this improves continuity of care.  If an appointment is not available with your own GP and you are prepared to wait you will be offered a pre-booked appointment (subject to availability) or asked to ring again on the next day you want to try to make the appointment.  All the GPs can access your notes electronically so unless your visit is related to a chronic disease or is in connection with an on-going serious problem requiring prior detailed knowledge then any one of them will be able to treat you to the same high standard.  On the rare occasion when you must see your own GP if she/he is seeing patients the receptionist will pass you on to the medical secretary.  The medical secretary has some discretion to override our booking system in emergencies and may speak to the GP to decide if you should be fitted into the schedule with a sit-and-wait appointment.  She may also arrange for the GP to telephone you to see if the problem can be resolved that way or, alternatively, the GP may agree to extend the surgery and see you before starting patient visits.

Why am I asked if I want a telephone appointment?

The GPs often see patients who have minor illnesses and conditions that could have been managed over the telephone. This makes appointments in the surgery less available for those who really need them. Obviously there are some occasions when even minor conditions need to be seen to enable a proper diagnosis. Skin rashes and ear infections are typical examples. Re-occurrences of minor problems that simply require some form of prescription on the other hand can easily be dealt with over the phone. Reassurance about particular symptoms is another example where a telephone conversation may be adequate there is some reluctance from our patients to ask for telephone appointments. Please remember that this can be more convenient in that you do not have to travel and you will also free up time for other patients who need to see the doctor more urgently.

If you opt to make a telephone appointment the GP will attempt to contact you twice. If you do not answer but have an answer machine, the GP will leave a message to say that an attempt to contact yhou has been made; no medical information will be left on the machine. You could be contacted at any time from the time you make the appointment until early appointment. If you do not answer either call attempt you will be treated as having not attended your appointment and you will need to make a new appointment in the normal way.

Failure to attend

Any patient failing to attend either a face to face or telephone appointment without offering a satisfactory explanation will be sent a letter advising that if this happens on three occasions, within a twelve month period, the patient will be removed from the practice list.

Medically Urgent / Emergency Cases

If you are telephoning about a later stage palliative care condition you should read the Home Visits section below. All other medically urgent/emergency cases will be seen in the surgery without an appointment, but this may involve waiting. If you are telephoning and have symptoms such as severe chest pain, breathing difficulties or haemorrhage which you believe may be life threatening if you are not seen immediately, you should call 999 rather than the surgery as our GPs are unable to provide an instant access service. Depending on availability, it could be up to four hours before you receive a response from your GP or the on-call doctor.

HOW DO I...
OBTAIN A HOME VISIT?

Requests for home visits should only be made if attending the surgery is not possible. Such requests should be made before 10.30am unless an urgent need arises. It is likely that the GP will telephone before making a visit to determine whether this is the best course of action. Unless your call is related to later stage palliative care you should call 999 rather than request a home visit if you believe a life-threatening condition exists. (See section above: Medically Urgent/Emergency cases). If you are telephoning about a later stage palliative care condition and need to speak to the doctor immediately you should make the receptionist aware of this fact and a GP will contact you as soon as possible following the end of any in-progress consultation.

HOW DO I...
OBTAIN TEST RESULTS?

Your GP will advise you when it is necessary to ring for a test result. If this is the case you should telephone the practice between 9.00am - 12 noon. Tuesday to Friday allowing at least five working days to obtain the results of your investigations. You will then be put through to a member of staff who can answer your enquiry. It is not necessary to ring for any other test results. Your GP will always review your results and will contact you if there is a need to discuss them when he or she has not already agreed a follow-up appointment for you. Patients who have blood tests for ongoing monitoring of INR should continue to ring at the times agreed with the practice.