Annually the practice survey the patients registered at the practice to gain insight into how the practice is doing to support the health and care of the local area.

Information from the survey is used to gauge what is working well with the practice and what is not, opinions, experiences and views of the patients.

From the replies the practice is able to find details of areas which need improvement and also where we have performed well.

Download the 2023-2024 Survey Report

The survey presented a few questions and points from patients.

Below we would like to provide an answer or address some of the more common themes within your replies.

Your Privacy

Privacy when at reception

If you require to provide or receive information at our reception and you are have concern about the privacy of the situation you are always welcome to either ask for paper and a pen or if you can discuss the matter in private.

Privacy when providing information to our team

The information you provide (specifically appointment reasons was mentioned) is stored securely and our team never disclose this to anyone who is not involved in your care.

Our team are bound by confidentiality and privacy laws, which make it against the law for us to provide or discuss the information which was given or let it be seen by anyone who is not involved in the care pathway you initiate.

Reception Desk

“I was waiting and the team member was ignoring me”

Please remember that not all duties of the reception is checking you into see a clinician.
If the member of our team who is performing duties at the front desk appears to be ignoring you this is only because they are currently handling another duty.

Our reception also handles calls, filing of prescriptions and some of our processes do not allow us to check you in or handle your request without first finishing the task.
The systems we run are designed and created by a third party and the decision to reduce the risk of error by preventing multiple patients or information being handled at one time is a safety feature which we have no control.

Please be assured that the team member knows you are there but is unable to attend to you for a variety of reasons.

On occasion our receptionist may also be dealing with NHS clinic patients as we share the building with variety of NHS and Community Services.

Having an additional member of our team within the reception area would not help alleviate this situation due to the additional incoming telephone calls which would normally be taken from by the main office.

“I felt other people were listening to me”

Please see the “Privacy when at reception” above.

Repeat Medications

Ordering Medications Online

The practice have the facility to order your medications online via a system called Patient Access which is available both as an app for your smart device or via their website (links to patient access are provided on our website).

If you do not have access to patient access and wish to order your medications online please contact reception in person with a form of photographic identification.
Our team member will be able to provide you with more detail at the time.

Unfortunately due to confidentiality and GDPR we are unable to enable online medication ordering without the patient present and a form of identification.

If ordering online is not suitable for you our prescription line is open 24/7 where your order can be left at a time which suits you. The telephone number is 01563 825201.

Appointments

Why we ask you for the reason for your appointment

Each member of our clinical team provides expertise in different areas, no single member of our clinical team can provide you care in every situation. This includes Doctors, Advanced Nurses, Health Care staff who all provide specific services and expertise.

You do not need to provide a detailed explanation for your reason a small indication will do. Providing an indication as to why you are requesting an appointment to ensure you see the right person first time.

Providing a reason, even just a small hint, when booking an appointment will ensure you are seen by the correct member of our team first time, prevent multiple visits or calls and addressing your needs as quick as possible.
This not only saves you time, it allows us to maximise the time our clinical staff can spend with you ensuring your care needs are met.

If you are not happy to provide a reason for a routine appointment please let our team know that you do not wish to provide a reason but this may mean you may wait longer to be seen.

All our emergency appointments require a reason to be booked to ensure you are seen by the most appropriate member of our clinical team.

“Sometimes my symptoms are hard to explain over the phone”

If you think this will be an issue please tell your clinical team member at the time of the call or let our reception know you feel this would be an issue.

We offer face to face appointments with our clinical team but find many issues can be resolved over the telephone allowing you to save time and get care as quick as possible.

If you prefer to attend the practice this is not a problem, just ask and we can arrange this.

“It is difficult to see a Doctor”

In recent years there has been an increase in pressures and demand for General Practice (GP) services, this also includes an increase in demand for appointments with a Doctor.

To help with this pressure and demand our practice use the skills and knowledge of our Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP) team.

Our ANP team are able to undertake almost everything a Doctor can.
It is important to note that ANP’s are not just Nurses but are also able to diagnose health conditions, conduct check-ups, research patient conditions, refer patients to specialists and prescribe and administer medication amongst other duties.

Not only do they require experience within healthcare to become an ANP. They also undertake further education and training to bring them to the level similar to a Doctor.

Patients who attend our ANP team regularly find that our ANP team are just as effective as seeing our Doctors.

“It is like your appointments are gate kept”

The practice never rejects a request from a patient for an appointment.
There may be times that appointments are full meaning we can only offer appointments so far into the future.

All our requests for emergency appointments will be triaged by our clinical team.

If you do not wish to be seen urgently please ask our team to book you in with the next routine appointment. You will still be asked why you are attending to ensure you are seen by the most appropriate member of our clinical team as soon as possible.

Comments and Complaints

“I wanted to raise an issue but I did not know who I spoke too”

This does not matter, finding out who you spoke to is our job.

If you feel that you have a complaint or wish to raise an issue do not get put off by the lack of names. All you have to do is provide us with why you wish to bring the matter to our attention, who you are, when you attended or contacted us we will do the rest.

Details of our complaint procedure are available on our Patient Rights page.