Appointments

Telephone or call at either surgery to make an appointment for the doctor or practice nurse. Patients can book appointments with any doctor up to six-eight weeks in advance. You may also book appointments online but you will need to register at reception first. 

In an emergency, if you feel, and we agree, that you need to see a doctor or nurse at short notice, we will offer you an appointment within 24 hours. If you wish to see a specific doctor or nurse you may have to wait longer.

To help us keep to appointment times, please book a double appointment if you think you are going to need more than 10 minutes with the doctor or nurse.

Please do not ask the doctor to see another family member during your appointment as this makes time-keeping very difficult and leads to complaints from the other patients who may be waiting.

There is always a heavy demand for appointments. As soon as you realise you cannot keep an appointment, even at short notice, please inform the surgery, so that it can be offered to someone else.

Unfortunately, due to patients' varying needs, it is sometimes difficult to keep the appointment system running to time.

We offer a choice of appointments to patients for either booking in advance or on the day. The same-day appointments are released as the surgery opens at 08:00 each day. We would advise any patients who wish to make same-day appointments to ring as early as possible. 

Your first point of contact with the surgery will normally be a receptionist who will be happy to help you.

What Do We All Do?

The doctors are happy to discuss any problems of physical or mental health.

The practice nurses provide surgery-based nursing procedures and help care for patients with asthma, diabetes and coronary heart disease. They give vaccinations and perform cervical smears. They can give advice on family planning and health promotion issues.

The triage nurse can assess your problem and give advice on the most appropriate course of action eg routine appointment, emergency appointment, self care, visit dentist, A&E, pharmacy etc.

The district nurses provide nursing care for people who are ill at home.

Interpreters

The doctors and nurses speak English. Please ask a receptionist if you need an interpreter.

Telephone Advice

It is possible to speak to a clinician for advice. Please be prepared to leave a contact number unless the call is urgent and requires immediate attention.

Home Visits

If possible please try to telephone reception before 11:00 if you require a home visit.

A triage nurse is an experienced nurse who will take some brief details over the telephone. This will help her decide and arrange the right type of appointment for you. If you feel you need to be seen urgently, we will try to fit you in with a nurse or doctor, however busy we are.

House visits are only available for patients who are housebound because of illness or disability.

Please remember that several patients can be seen in the practice in the time that it takes to make one home visit. There are also better facilities for examining and treating patients at the surgery.

GP Training

The practice is approved as a training practice for general practitioners and for other newly qualified doctors. Doctors studying general practice are attached to the practice for periods of up to one year. These doctors have had extensive experience in hospitals before joining and, having recently qualified, are very up to date. The practice has gained enormously from their attachment to us. A GP in training may need to discuss your case with one of the partners.

Occasionally a medical student will be attached to the practice and may be present when you visit your doctor. Your doctor will always ask your permission if a third person is to be present during your consultation. If you decide to see your doctor on his/her own, this will in no way affect your treatment or your relationship with the practice.