Appointments

 

For non-urgent issues, please follow the guidelines below and choose the right service. An appointment may not be necessary.

This will help us to be more efficient by making an appointment available to you when you need it the most.

Book an Appointment

Check your condition first

Many conditions can be dealt with without the need to see your GP.

 

You can try a local pharmacy for advice about a range of conditions and we also have lots of self help information. Please try this advice before contacting the Practice.

You can find out who is best placed to deal with your condition by making a selection below

 

The NHS Symptom Checker will also give you advice on who to see 

Book a Routine Appointment

Attendance at surgeries and minor illness clinics is by appointment and these are available each weekday. If you have an urgent problem we will see you on that day, although this may mean not seeing your usual doctor.  You can contact us on 01243 210086 which will take you to the surgery telephone system which will offer you a range of extension choices where you will be put into a queue. 

If you are in pain or feeling unwell, please let reception know so that your wait can be kept to a minimum.

Patients are allocated 10 minutes for a single appointment, so please try not to make more than one request at a consultation.  If there are several things on your mind please ask for a double appointment. Please also remember that an appointment is for one person only; where another member of the family needs to be seen or discussed, another appointment should be made (so that time can be allocated and the correct records made available).

We have now introduced online bookings for advanced appointments and repeat prescription ordering.  We also have the facility for you to access your Detailed Coded Record (this needs to be requested through the Practice). If you would like to sign up to our online services please ensure we have an up to date unique email address for each patient where you will be happy to receive any confidential emails regarding health matters and appointments. 

You will need to bring in Identification to the Practice for us to be able to enable this. Once your registered you can book online using our online consultation tool.

Please be aware that when your booking an appointment for a Nurse prescriber or a Paramedic Practitioner that they are only able to see patients with Minor illnesses.

Telephone Consultations

Should you wish to speak to a doctor just for advice our receptionists will arrange this for you. You can book a time just like a normal appointment and the doctor will call you back as close to the appointed time as possible. You may find this service useful if you think it unlikely that you require a physical examination or if your query is straightforward.

Practice Nurses

In a number of cases it might be worth considering an appointment with a practice nurse rather than a doctor. Practice nurses are qualified to deal with many conditions and you may be seen more quickly. Find out more about the services we provide

Text Message Reminders

You can now register to receive information by text message on your phone regarding appointments and health care. 

If you wish to register for this messaging service please fill out the consent form.

New Data Protection Regulations from May 2018 (GDPR)
Under the new data protection regulations introduced from 25th May 2018, we will continue to contact patients via text messages regarding the delivery of care if they have provided consent to do so.

If practices are sending messages about recommended treatment for the management of a specific health issue, then this is defined as providing appropriate care for patients, not marketing purposes.

If you would like out opt out of any future contact via text messaging, then please complete the form and indicate in the marked section.

More information is available in our policies section

Been Off Work?

Travel Vaccinations

Home Visits

Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible. In this respect, if you do need a home visit, you can help us by calling reception before 11:00am.

You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. Your GP/Paramedic Practitioner will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it and will also decide how urgently a visit is needed. Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls.

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.

Life Threatening - Go to A&E

Call 999 or go to A&E now if:

 
  • you or someone you know needs immediate help
  • you have seriously harmed yourself - for example, by taking a drug overdose

A mental health emergency should be taken as seriously as a medical emergency.

Find your nearest A&E

How to Cancel an Appointment

If you are unable to keep your appointment, please give us as much notice as possible so that your appointment can be offered to someone else.

If you are cancelling please telephone us on 01243 210086.

Alternatively you can cancel your appointment using our online services or The NHS App if you are signed up to the service.

Chaperones

The Health Centre is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times and the safety of everyone is of paramount importance.

All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present for any consultation, examination or procedure where they feel one is required.  This chaperone may be a family member or friend. On occasions you may prefer a formal chaperone to be present, i.e. a trained member of staff.

Wherever possible we would ask you to make this request at the time of booking an appointment so that arrangements can be made and your appointment is not delayed in any way.  Where this is not possible we will endeavour to provide a formal chaperone at the time of request.  However occasionally it may be necessary to reschedule your appointment.

Your healthcare professional may also require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations in accordance with our chaperone policy.

If you have any questions or comments regarding this please contact the practice manager.