Appointments

The surgery operates a system which books appointments at ten minute intervals. Appointments may be made at the surgery or by telephone.

We aim to offer every patient an appointment within 48 hours.

The first available appointment may not be with the doctor of your choice or at the time or surgery of your choice, so you may choose to book a later appointment that is more convenient. 

If you are not offered a "48 hour" appointment we need to know - please complete one of our comment slips (held at reception) or mention it to the receptionist.

We would appreciate it if you would observe the following points:

• If you are unable to keep an appointment, please inform the surgery as soon as possible.
• Please let the receptionist know the nature and urgency of your problem and they will do their best to accommodate you.

We never refuse to see urgent cases. These will normally be fitted in at the end of the surgery.

We do try to keep to appointment times however, some problems take longer and sometimes an emergency removes the doctor from surgery. Please be patient in these circumstances.

Home Visits

Please make requests for home visits only when the patient through illness, is unable to attend surgery. Visits are usually undertaken after the morning or evening surgery unless they are for emergencies. We would appreciate it if requests for home visits be made as early as possible after 08.30am.

Telephone Advice

The practice values telephone consultations/ triage:

• When you make a request to speak to a doctor, the receptionist, or telephonist will ascertain the urgency of the request.
• Your details will be taken including name, date of birth, telephone number and a brief explanation of the problem.
• If the request is urgent, the call will be transferred to the duty doctor.
• If the request is non-urgent, the details will be taken and written into the doctor’s/nurse’s message book for their attention after surgery.

Any consultations as well as information are recorded in the patient’s record.

Chaperones

The doctors and nurses frequently need to perform intimate examinations, for example the breast, rectum and genital areas. They also need to get very close to you to examine your eyes. They will explain the examination to you and why it is necessary. It is common to feel uncomfortable and embarrassed during these examinations however, if you are uncertain about the examination, or if you would prefer not to have a particular examination, please say so and we will try to offer an alternative.

A chaperone is a witness to a medical examination and they may take several roles. They can be a moral support to you and provide a witness to the appropriateness of the examination for both parties.

Our reception and nursing staff are available to chaperon should you, or the doctor/ nurse prefer. In some situations, for example a male practitioner examining a female patient, we would specifically offer one. We would also offer a chaperon for unaccompanied under 16-year olds. We are prepared to chaperon any situation should you wish. You may prefer a friend or relative to chaperon and we will try to accommodate this.

There may be occasions when we are short-staffed and unable to offer a chaperon there and then and in this instance the appointment could be re-arranged.

If at any stage you are uncomfortable during this type of examination, or wish to stop the examination, please tell the examiner immediately.