Letter: Can I please see my GP? Please? Can I?
Monday 13th June 2011, 6:35AM BST.
Letter: I am just wondering if anybody has similar problems to us with their GPs.
My wife has been unwell for some time and on going to our doctors one Thursday, the GP said “You have certainly gone worse just lately”, and gave my wife an urgent blood test saying, “Come back and see me within the week for the results”.
On trying to make a appointment we were told the doctor works Tuesday’s and Thursday’s and the following Tuesday the surgery was closed for staff training so that narrowed it down to Thursday of that week. We were then told there were no available appointments for the Thursday and the following Tuesday was the only available appointment.
The receptionist then said we could have a telephone consultation with the doctor if we wanted for the Tuesday of staff training day, to which we agreed. We waited by the phone all day on Tuesday, no such call came.
This after the doctor wanted an urgent blood test. So my wife now has to wait nearly two weeks to find out what, if any, course of action they will take. Of course our practice has some cosmetic building work going on so patient care seems to take second place.
We were wondering if all practices are like this?
A J Harris
Shrewsbury
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Unfortunately seems to be a common theme. My GP has introduced online appointment booking meaning you can see for yourself when there’s an appointment free with which doctor. My GP practice has 8 doctors and when you try and phone for an appointment they can only book 2 weeks in advance and there are very rarely any free appointments. Most times they recommend you phone at 8 the next morning to get some of that days emergency appointments which means that people with routine ailments now ring on the day hoping for one of the handful of appointments available for supposed ‘emergencies’.
I looked last week online to see if i could book an appointment and out of the 8 GP’s only one had any free appointments in the next 2 weeks and even they had only 3 free.
Is this progress?
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Unfortunately you’re not alone on this. My GP practice operates a call and hope system. You have to call at 8.30am sharp and if you’re lucky enough to get through regardless of ailment you have to give your phone number and wait for the triage nurse to call you back to see if you are ‘deserving’ of a doctor.
Following this call, she will possibly give you an appointment that afternoon but this is not guarenteed- by this point you have had to call in sick due to waiting for the call which can take up to 3 hours to come through.
Though the Triage Nurse isn’t always a blessing. I had an injured knee which had doubled in size. Already taking perscription painkillers for an injury to my back I was advised to take both those painkillers and Ibuprofen!! I followed instructions, fell asleep in 30 mins and woke up the next morning with a hangover! I wasn’t ‘allowed’ to see a doctor for 3 days and when I explained what I had been advised and the outcome she couldn’t believe the nurse had been so wrong in advice. I was then sent to A&E for xrays due to the swelling etc and fortunately my GP was sensible and pre-booked a follow up appointment.
Sadly it seems its not the GP’s at fault, it is the systems in place for the reception team etc following orders by practice owners following Government working format rules that make this whole mess.
Demand exceeds supply and ultimately, this creates the chaos at A&E and overall inefficiency that the Government penalise trusts for.
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What rubbish!
Dont let a little thing like fact detract from your tale…
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It must be great, Andy, being a psychic and knowing The Truth about everyone else…
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Must be catching!! I rang my doctors on a monday morning to make an appointment to see ‘my’ doctor. ”A week on wednesday” I was told.Well I’ll have to see one of the other doctors instead.A week tomorrow,tuesday, i was told.You’re joking I said! She then asked ‘is it urgent???’, well,I won’t know that until i’ve seen the doctor will I!!!.
Then on the day of my appointment,while waiting to see ‘another doctor’ , someone on the phone is offered an appointment with ‘my’ doctor less than 1 hour later!! Luck of the draw!!
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Maybe your doctor doesnt like you?
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Maybe your doctor refuses to treat you for your verbal diarrhoea?
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This has been a bug bear of mine for years. The problem starts with the receptionists. After speaking to many people, doctors receptionists are the same everywhere. The power they have to stop you seeing a doctor at a time that suits you!!! And how you can hear the glee in their voices when they advise there aren’t any appointments. I’ve even had one asking what my reasons were for wanting a telephone consultation with a doctor…… ‘umm if it’s all the same to you, I’ll discuss that with the doctor thank you’ was my reply. They seem to be under the impression that they are medically qualified themselves. I’m sorry to say I have an aversion to them, due to their attitudes. There must be something in the job description that states ‘be difficult whilst also being patronising, but make it sound like you’re bring nice’. Horrible.
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If i was a doctors receptionist then your attitude towards doctors receptionists would guarantee there are no available appointment spaces.
Lighten up and start being nice to people, you may get more of what you want.
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Good job you’re not one then otherwise evidently you’d be treating the patients with the same contepmpt the current ones do!
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I and my wife are patients of the Charlton Medical Centre Oakengates
Wonderful service and great Doctor backup facilities.
Receptionists and nurses are a joy to deal with.
Why all this moaning now in England about everything
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I use Aqueduct in Telford and i’ve never had an trouble getting an appointment within a couple of days ( on occasion the same day )
Same as any proffession i reckon, the more you grumble the less helpfull people tend to be. Its funny how this seems to be more common in Shrewsbury, a town of grumblers..
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Might have known you’re from the lovely Telford :)
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grumble grumble
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yes i suffer the same, have to ring at 8.30 in a morning to maybe get a same day appt (this i cannot do as i am on the school run then) ring after 9.30 and everything has gone. no appts for the next 2 weeks and the diarys don’t go any further!
So end up not going and hope everything turns out good.
One day this method is going to back fire.
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I live in France and the system they have over here is that most appointments with your local Doctor are normally within a week but if you are not fussy about the time you may well get an appointment within 2 or 3 days – however, after you have seen the Doctor you have to pay them 23 euros there and then. You are issued with a card by your local health and the card is ‘swiped’ by the Doctor. The local health authority then reimburses 70 per cent of that 23 euros within 2 weeks and the rest is made up by your personal health insurance company. The point being is that if you had to stump up £21 every time you visited the Doc’s I’m sure you would get appointments far quicker !!
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Or you’d think more carefully about whether you actually needed to go in the first place!
Anything given free (at the point of contact) always becomes taken for granted.
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Simple if you feel it is urgent go to casualty .A receptionist contrary to popular belief is not a DR and should they ask are you?When you state it is urgent, reply I know my own body and I believe it is urgent. Have no truck with two bit receptionists on a power trip to late when your dead as many have found out.
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There’s a difference between an urgent need to see a GP (could be medication prescribed that’s having other side effects for example) and a real emergency that needs a visit to casualty. It’s unbelieveable what some people go to casualty for these days but some of that is because of the problems people have in getting to see a GP. The answer is to be able to see a GP within 2-3 days and have them open at evenings and weekends (which is when casualty is at it’s busiest not surprisingly). What i don’t understand is that i can never get an appointment within a few days but when i do go the surgery is almost always virtaully empty. The 2 just don’t add up.
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My point above entirely.
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I belong to a tiny practice, 2 GP’s, 2 different surgeries (so only 1 GP at a surgery at any time). I can make appointments 8 weeks in advance (long standing medical condition needing regular review), I can also call and request an urgent appointment and get one either that day, or first thing the following day, depending what time I call (today I called at 8.30 and had an appointment for 9.30). I have also arrived as the surgery had finished, in tears, and the GP saw me and spent 30 minutes with me, helping me. The receptionist is fantastic, has been there for many years, if you give her an synopsis of the problem she may suggest you see one of the doctors in particular, or the nurse instead, but will happily book as you request.
Ok, no weekend surgeries, only one evening surgery a week (per site), but have been known to book patients in at the other surgery if it is urgent and there is only a GP on duty at the other site, not the one you are a regular patient at (the will ask you first if it is okay)
If my tiny surgery can do this, why cant bigger practices? (oh, and for those who want to know, it is located in/around central telford)
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I use Trinity Health care in Aqueduct and I never have had a problem getting an appointment (mostly same day), staff always friendly too.
Alot different to my previous doctors not too far away, they have a drop in from 8:30am-10am, all well and good if you don’t work or want to sit around for what feels like hours waiting for your name to be called.
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This reminds me of Tony Hancock. When Hancock visited the surgery his doctor said: “I haven’t seen you in here for a while”
Hancock replied: “No, I’ve been ill….”
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There does seem to be a hell of a variation in the level of service provided by different GP practices. Mine (Church Close in Madeley) has receptionists that are unfailingly friendly and helpful (as are the doctors) and usually offer me an appointment on the same day.
As already mentioned above, perhaps it helps if you treat them in the same way that you’d like them to treat you – I’ve heard patients talking to receptionists as though they’re something nasty that they’ve found on the bottom of their shoe…..
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Not to forget, of course, that there is a walk-in surgery in the grounds of PRH with free parking and ready availability of doctors. No need to register.
I use it as a back-up service. If I cannot get an appointment with my doctor within the time-frame that I require, I just go to the drop-in centre. I’ve never waited more than 30 minutes to see a doctor.
There’s a similar one in Telford Centre run by same organisation, but I have never visited that one so cannot vouch for it.
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I have used the drop in clinic in the town centre when I was unable to get a same day appointment with my GP and was in considerable pain.
Waited less than 15 minutes, the doctor I saw was thorough and very professional, and I walked away with my prescription less than half an hour after arriving in the clinic.
I now recommend this clinic to any friends and relatives who need to see a doctor the same day, and often think of heading straight there for a far superior service instead of doing battle with my doctors receptionist!
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There is a Drop in Centre in Shrewsbury which I have used and have to say provides excellent service and the wait time is minimal.
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Our local surgery is great, 90% of the time if I phone asking for a “routine” visit I’m offered one the same day.
When I had recent cause to have a blood test, my own GP telephoned me within 24 hours to tell me the result was abnormal and to go along to the surgery to collect an urgent prescription.
I imagine the letter writers own doctor would have also made contact if the blood result showed cause. But why not phone the surgery to double check, rather than moaning in the local rag?
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I stopped calling – had to call at 830am, always got engaged tone, by 9am all appointments taken. In the end I just started turning up and being visible – wait for an appt with any Dr, not necessarily ‘my’ Dr, and if they can’t see me then go to see a pharmacist or if really concerned hospital…nobody can guess they are going to be spontaneously ill in order to book an advance appointment that suits the booking systems and practices and being a visible presence always served me well
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Hi Stone
I went to the PRH Drop in Centre and was told to come back tomorrow as all the doctors were off sick
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The important thing about your GP is not how quick you can get in and out with a prescription or the difficulties with receptionists. It is the very personal relationship/bond you make with him or her over a long period of time. This is fundamental to our health service and sadly is being eroded.
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“personal relationship/bond you make with him or her over a long period of time. This is fundamental to our health service and sadly is being eroded.”
It’s gone at Wellington – you no longer have your ‘own’ GP there. Luckily I go so rarely I don’t know any of them so I don’t care (except one who I wouldn’t let examine a pet rat).
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true, but if you cant even get in then how do you build that relationship/bond…one receptionist told me that the reason they only allow us to call for bookings in the mornings and not book in advance is because there are certain gvmt guidelines they have to hit for how long patients wait for appt etc, so if you are not booked then you are not waiting according to the system of record….and they get extra kudos for seeing people same day or within 48-hours…the receptionists though do take their power a little too far and many are downright rude, ignoring people who go to counter and avoiding eye contact etc….it wouldn’t work in any other industry that valued customers but sadly many people have no choice of the practice they deal with so we have to lump it.
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Just become a member of the royal family. You will then have doctors fighting over you and no waiting lists.
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It amazes me the difference in the GP surgeries and how quickly you can get an appointment.
I live in Madeley, my partner goes to Church Close practice and I go to Woodside. I have never once had to wait more than 24 hours for appointments and usually the same day at Woodside. My partner will often call Church Close and have to wait until the following week. Fine for routine stuff, but when it’s about a new or worsening condition, it’s far too long.
All that does is put pressure on A&E and the new Drop in Centres.
I suppose though that in Telford that we are quite fortunately to have the number of GP sugeries we have, which means that if one is falling below your expectations, there is another one not too far away. Maybe its time for more competition between them?
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Its really inconsistent. When I lived in Dawley the service was terrible, the receptionist made me make an appointment with the nurse for an uneccessary blood pressure check up to get a repeat presciption and she made the appointment for a half hour before the nurse started work! Even the nurse told me she didnt know why I was there.
Yet in all the years I have been with Donnington Health Centre they couldn’t be more helpful and accommodating!
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Wellington surgery is like a cattle market and can be very depressing. Still, the doctors can command higher wages if they want to, they just have to apply for them.
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I have to say that I think my GP practice is fantastic and I have never had any problems with them. I am registered with the Plas Ffynnon Medical Centre in Oswestry (have been ever since I moved here 9 years ago) and it was there that I was diagnosed with a long-term condition (after it was ignored for 8 years previously in a different county), it was there that my daughters life-threatening bowel condition was discovered and it was them who sent her straight to Alder Hey for emergency surgery. I have an excellent relationship with my GP and quite often if I can’t get an appointment the receptionists are more than happy to arrange a telephone consultation for the same day, if my GP thinks he needs to see me then he asks me to nip down and see him during his surgery that day. The staff there are all fantastic and I can’t say a bad word about the medical centre and it’s staff.
For me it doesn’t matter how booked up my GP’s list is, or how long I would normally have to wait for an appointment, because I have that good relationship with him he knows that I wouldn’t ring if I didn’t need something, and therefore I know that if I need to be seen urgently he will get me in on the same day.
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I’m glad to hear there is still such a thing as good customer service out there and its unfortunately not heard of much in recent times.
I also hope both you and your daughter are doing well and wish you luck for a positive future.
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Hi,
I can’t say that I’ve ever had to wait more than a few hours for a doctor’s appointment. I usually call in the morning (about 8.30h) and will be seen on the same day (I even get a limited choice of times). Fair enough it might not be my GP I usually see, but if you are that desperate to see a doctor you surely won’t mind to see someone different that time?!? Have you considered to change your doctors’ practice to a different one???
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My GPs receptionist told me in December that he does three days of private appointments.
No wonder I cannot get one! In a surgery which is subsudised by the NHS!
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I have a great doctors at Lawley and I get to see a doctor almost straight away not my own but any one of them people keep saying my doctor as if they own them all doctors are great so see the one that is free on the day you need to see them. On the lighteraside of things I wear hearing aids and I asked the lady behind the desk for some new batteries for them and the reply was what was I going to use them for BLESS
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