HOW DO I...
OBTAIN AN APPOINTMENT?

The doctors, nurse practitioners and nursing team run surgeries and clinics at various times between 8.00am and 6.00pm Monday to Friday. Consultations are by appointment only. We strive to maintain 48 hour access to our medical team for all patients and in order to this we need to limit the number of appointments we make available for advance booking, therefore the majority of appointments are 'book on the day', for doctors and practiioners. Nurses' appointments should always be booked in advance whenever possible.

Each appointment is for one person only with one complaint. If you have a number of concerns that you need to discuss, further appointment time will be necessary. Please advise reception of your needs when booking your appointment. The reception team are responsible for managing the allocation of appointments and in order to do this effectively they will ask for details. The receptionist needs only the briefest detail to be able to direct a patient to the most suitable clinician (doctor, nurse practitioner, practice nurse or health care assistant).

Note: Patients will NOT be seen without an appointment unless it is a medical emergency. If you arrive late for an appointment we cannot guarantee that you will be seen; you may be asked to make another appointment or sit and wait until the end of surgery to ensure other patients are not inconvenienced. Please call the surgery if you know you are going to be late.

The surgery also offers 'ring-backs' for patients who either do not need to be seen in person or who may require urgent medical assistance but no appointment is routinely available that day. This service involves one of the GPs calling the patient on the phone within a few hours. Messages cannot be left on answer machines, therefore it is vital that you can give a telephone number where you can be contacted directly. Telephone consultations can also be booked in advance with either a GP or and NP.

If for any reason you cannot keep a booked appointment please telephone the surgery as soon as possible so that the appointment time can be allocated to another patient.

HOW DO I...
OBTAIN A HOME VISIT?

Home visits are for serious illness and those that are medically housebound. If a home visit is requested, a doctor will normally telephone to assess prior to attending. Doctors have better facilities to treat patients at the surgery and this is always preferred where possible. Any requests for home visits should be made as early in the day as possible.