Appointments

We offer on the day appointments every day with GPs.  Please ring at 8.00am and you will be offered an appointment with a clinician.  We also offer pre-bookable appointments 6 weeks in advance, although this has currently been suspended.  

Around 8-10% of the appointments we offer are wasted every week by patients not turning up to an appointment they made.  Or not answering when they are called.  We have begun an action plan to reduce these numbers, including using SMS reminders, but the responsibility to attend lies with the patient.  Patients should cancel appointments that they are unable to attend. All patients have a choice where possible to see their preferred Doctor, however you may have a longer wait if you insist on seeing a particular clinician.  Please also ensure your line is kept clear during the times you are told to expect a call and ensure you accept calls from withheld numbers.

We estimate that around 30% of the appointments booked are for reasons that do not need a clinicians input.  i.e 3 out of every 10 patients who book an appointment DO NOT NEED TO SEE A GP AT ALL.  Whats worse is that certain patients refuse to give any information about their problem to our trained receptionists, so they cannot be diverted to more appropriate care.  We ask patients to protect their own service as there are a fixed number of appointments daily and if they are all taken up by minor problems, those who really need to be seen will not be able.  Below are some tips to avoid having to make an appointment:

• Self certificates can now be used to cover illnesses up to 28 days from the previous 5.
• Do not make a GP appointment to discuss the delivery of your prescriptions- Speak to reception or your pharmacy
• Do not make a GP appointment to discuss an existing referral.  Speak to the referral secretaries who have access to the appropriate system.
• Do not make a GP appointment to discuss as investigation organised after a referral.  It is the consultants responsibility to inform you of the results.
• Speak to your pharmacist about minor illnesses.  They can prescribe many medications to help conditions such as Skin rashes, coughs and colds, minor muscular injuries.

ACCESS TO GP RECORDS ONLINE

We are pleased to announce that you can have access to your medical record online via providers such as Patient Access. Login via the button below.  You can book, cancel and amend appointments online via Patient Access or now the NHS app. If you do not yet have an account but would like one please come into the practice and speak to a receptionist. If you have a Patient Access account you can view your medical record online. Click on the button below to login.  Other providers are available.

• Tell us if you want someone to accompany you during an examination or a private room to discuss any matters. Remember that the results of tests can only be given to the patient.
• Let us know if more than one person in the family needs to be seen as they can only be seen when booking appointments in advance.
• Some appointment slots may be 15 mins long depending on the complexity of the problem.
• All consultations are currently via telephone or video.  The GP will ring you at an approximate time on the telephone number you have given. Please make sure you give an up to date telephone number and allow withheld numbers to call.  
• If you are aged between 16yrs and 74yrs and have not been seen at our practice within the last 3yrs, you should make an appointment for a health check.
• If you are aged 75yrs or over and have not been seen within the last year, you should make an appointment for a healthcheck.

Below are the common questions/comments we encounter at the practice regarding appointments.

FAQ

I can never get through when I try to call at 8am?  I tried X number of times?

WMP has 3000 patient most of whom want to be seen on the day when they are unwell.  On any given morning, there will be 20-40 people phoning to get an appointment at the same time.  There are a limited number of lines at the practice, all of which are manned by the morning staff in order to take requests for appointments.  It is inevitable that once those lines are in use, anyone else calling will get an engaged tone.  Hence, those wanting a non urgent appointment are encouraged to book advanced appointments.  Also, please do not phone for anything other than wanting to make an urgent appointment, between the times of 8am- 9.30am, to keep the lines free.

Why are there no appointments available when the waiting rooms are empty?

The number of people sitting in the waiting room, is a bad way to determine how busy a practice is for numerous reasons.

a) We run an appointment based system.  i.e. we expect you to turn up and leave on time, hence there will be no reason to wait for long in the waiting room.  The only reason why a patient would be waiting is if they are waiting for something from reception or their appointment has been delayed (rarely)

b) Clinicians do not only see patients in a typical day.  We have fixed sessions in which they see patients, but outside of these, they are busy doing other tasks.  e.g. Home visits, reviewing prescriptions, blood results and hospital letters, staff meetings and reviews, practice management meetings, commissioning meetings and vary rarely if there are a spare 5 mins, having some lunch!  This list is not exhaustive.  Hence outside of these session times, there will not be many people sat in the waiting rooms

Why is it that my friend/relative, who is registered at another practice, can get an appointment sooner?

All Practices in the UK are struggling to meet demand for appointments.  However, patients should also reflect on reasons why our practice may be struggling to meet demand?  E.g. A recent audit showed that 8% of GP/ANP appointments are wasted every year by patients not cancelling their appointment?  That is 4 weeks’ worth of appointments.

What is a chaperone? 

A chaperone is an adult who is present during an intimate examination of a patient. A chaperone is there to protect both the patient and the doctor or midwife from allegations of inappropriate behaviour. They may also be asked to assist the doctor or midwife during the examination. Please view our Chaperone policy for more information.