Appointments

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MONDAY to FRIDAY APPOINTMENTS 9.00am to 11.30am and 3.30pm to 5.50pm

We run an appointments system for all surgeries and clinics. We have tried extremely hard to provide a comprehensive array of appointments to suit all types of patient requirement.

We use a system with fewer pre-booked appointments each day, but more appointments are available each day on a “first-come-first served” basis, however it is not necessary to ring at 8.30am to receive an appointment for that day, please try a little later. Afternoon appointments are available to book from 12 noon each day.

If you are unable to keep an appointment please ring and cancel it as someone else may be able to use it. There are a small number of appointments each day that can be booked via the Internet, you do need to register for Patient Services at the surgery to do this.

Currently we provide:

• Monday to Friday every week of the year except for bank holidays we have surgeries both morning and afternoon making ten sessions.
• Once a month usually a Thursday there is no afternoon surgery due to GP Education events.
• Other than periods of annual leave we have both full time GPs who work between five and eight sessions a week and a part time GP who works five sessions a week. For ease of continuity the sessions are the same each week unless due to exceptional circumstances they have to be amended.
• Normal morning sessions a GP has sixteen appointments, 25% of which are bookable up to four weeks in advance. When there is increased demand we also have a 12o’clock sit and wait option.
• Normal afternoon sessions a GP has three pre-bookable appointments up to four weeks in advance; seven book on the day appointments and triage appointments where the GP can telephone the patient to discuss the problem and where necessary can allocate a reserved appointment for that afternoon. “Book on the day” afternoon/early evening appointments are not released until 12.00 noon.

Occasionally your doctor has to leave the surgery on an emergency. The receptionist will tell you if this happens and will offer you the choice of awaiting the doctor’s return, or making another appointment.

Patients have not been registered with a particular GP since 2004 but with the Practice. Patients have to be able to see a GP within 48 hours, if they want to see a particular GP they may have to wait for longer than this.

It is not always possible for patients to see their doctor of choice for a number of reasons – they are already fully booked; they are not working that day; they are on leave that day. However all the doctors are very well qualified and have access to the same information held within your Electronic Patient Record so there is no problem with seeing another GP. We find that most patients prefer to wait for an appointment space to see their usual doctor, and we agree with this. The appointment book is made up weekly and displays four weeks in advance.

We have taken up a new service that allows patients to book appointments and order your repeat medication on line. You need to register to use this system please ask the duty receptionist for a form. Only a small number of appointments each day are available for on line booking, if unused these are put back into the normal system.