APPOINTMENTS & CONSULTING A HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL
The surgery employs a policy of easy patient access to appointments and works to maintain access to a clinician within 24 hours or to any doctor within 48 hours. We provide a choice of different ways of consulting with a clinician and can offer doctor and nurse appointments at least 4 weeks in advance.
You may book any of the appointment types listed below by telephoning (0118) 973 2678 and selecting option 2 to access the ‘routine appointments’ line. Alternatively you may book in person at the reception desk.
Please be aware that we operate an advanced access appointment system and not a fully 'book- on-the-day' appointment system. Therefore there is no advantage in calling the surgery immediately after it opens. It is better to book your appointment at least a day in advance. Our receptionists are at their busiest between 8am and 9am and you may find it easier to call after this time.
Our reception staff are specially trained to book the most appropriate available appointment for you. They are requested by the doctors to ask as to the nature of your appointment, in order to establish what appointment is most suitable to your needs. Please do not feel offended if you are asked medical details. All our staff are required to adhere to strict confidentiality at all times and our reception staff receive ongoing medical training from the clinicians to enable them to advise you appropriately. This policy allows the surgery to manage the doctors and nurses' valuable consultation time effectively, without compromising patient care.
Face to face consultations
These appointments are at 10 minute intervals during the doctors’ surgeries or minor illness nurse clinics and are booked in advance. On occasion, due to high patient demand or because of doctor annual leave, it may not be possible to book with your preferred GP. In this instance you will be offered an appointment with another clinician or doctor, on or as close to the date you requested, or offered an appointment with your preferred GP for a later date.
You may book a same day appointment where routine availability allows. However, you will be advised if an appointment is not available and offered the doctor triage service as an alternative (see triage service below).
Please remember to keep your appointment. If you cannot, then please ensure you notify the surgery at the earliest opportunity. If you are running late or have not checked in, then, again, you must let the reception desk know, otherwise you may not be able to be seen. Please be considerate so that we may offer your cancelled appointment to other patients.
Telephone consultations
Offering convenience to the patient, these appointments are at ten minute intervals during the doctors’ surgeries or minor illness nurse clinics and are booked in advance. The clinician will call you at the agreed appointment time, so please ensure you are available on the telephone number you gave when you booked.
On occasion, due to high patient demand or because of doctor annual leave, it may not be possible to book with your preferred GP. In this instance you will be offered an appointment with another clinician or doctor, on or as close to the date you requested, or offered an appointment with your preferred GP for a later date.
Please be considerate and cancel any appointment you cannot keep.
Home visits
The doctors provide home visits during core hours for patients who are confined to bed or unable to attend the surgery due to illness or infirmity. You should telephone before 10.30am if possible. The receptionist is required to ask the reason for the request and take some medical details. Therefore please be understanding toward the receptionist. Your request will then be passed to your preferred GP who will then contact you to confirm that you require a visit and to organise any medication they may be required to bring. Whenever possible you will be asked to come to the surgery as the facilities are better suited for examination and any subsequent treatment; in addition it is a more efficient use of the doctor’s time. Urgent requests are passed to the duty doctor on call and triaged accordingly. Any visit is arranged subject to the deemed immediate need of the patient.
Triage
The surgery retains a percentage of appointments for same day release which are allocated by the doctor or minor illness nurse. These appointments are made available to patients who have an immediate need to be seen the same day. These are called ‘triage’ appointments. If, because of high demand, you are unable to book an appointment for the same day, the receptionist will ask the reason for the appointment and take some medical details. They may then offer to add you to the doctor triage list or message list. A doctor will then call you to discuss your medical situation and if the doctor decides it appropriate, you will be offered an appointment to attend the surgery later in the day.
Please understand these appointments are released strictly at the doctors’ discretion based on their expert opinion of a patient’s immediate health need.
Messages
Our clinicians do not take direct telephone calls during their working day. However, you may call the surgery and ask to leave a message for your doctor or a nurse, if it is concerning a minor medical matter. If it is an administrative matter, such as chasing a referral appointment or a private fees request, you should speak with one of our receptionists or a member of our administration team.
Staff make every effort to return messages the same day. Please understand that on occasions this may not always be possible. Messages left after 1.00pm are added to the list for the next working day.
ACCESSING A DOCTOR OUTSIDE OF CORE HOURS
Extended hours
We expect the majority of patients to see their doctor during core surgery hours (8.00am - 6.30pm).
However we acknowledge that there are patients who have work commitments during these hours and find it difficult to attend. To provide greater choice to these patients, the surgery offers additional face to face doctor appointments outside of its core hours. If you think you may benefit from one of these appointments please speak to reception who will advise the times available, which can include particular mornings, evenings and some Saturday mornings.
These appointments are 10 minutes in duration and only available with a doctor. In addition the doctors rotate the sessions between them and therefore your preferred GP may not be the doctor you see. Please check with reception at the time of booking. Please be aware consultations are strictly by appointment only and must be booked in the usual way.
During extended hours the surgery is closed to patients without appointments. Should you require emergency medical assistance you should contact our out of hours provider (see below). Our telephone lines are also closed for all enquiries, as is our dispensary.
Out of Hours
The surgery doctors are not contracted by the NHS to provide immediate health need services to patients outside of the core hours of 8.00am - 6.30pm. The out of hours service is provided by NHS Berkshire West and operated by Westcall between the hours of 6.30pm to 8.00am every weekday night, over the weekend from 6.30pm Friday until Monday 8.00am and all Bank Holidays. Westcall uses fully trained General Practitioners and nurses at its Primary Care centre based at Royal Berkshire Hospital (RBH). The care centre is a fully functioning facility with access to emergency back up facilities immediately available and compliments the surgery in providing 24-hour patient access to high quality care.
To access the out of hours service, you should telephone the main surgery number (0118) 973 2678 and select option 9.
After a call handler has taken your call, a medical professional will triage your immediate health needs and either provide advice, invite you to be seen at the care centre at RBH or arrange for a doctor to visit you at home.
TEST RESULTS
These are available over the telephone only after 11.30am Monday to Friday during the surgery’s core hours. Because of the sheer number of results we receive the emphasis is with the patient to call the surgery. You must allow at least 5 working days for the result to be returned to us. Some test results may take longer to be returned and the clinician should advise you accordingly. If your test was carried out at a hospital at the request of a consultant or specialist you should contact the hospital you attended, in order to get your test result. This is because we do not receive these results so please do not call the surgery.
Very often test results are within normal ranges and in these instances our fully trained receptionists are able to inform you of your result. They are also able to inform you if the doctor has made a comment for action and what that action may be; such as a prescription for medication. Otherwise the doctor will have commented that they would like to discuss the result with you and the receptionist will ask the doctor or nurse to return your call. All our staff are required to adhere to strict confidentiality at all times. Please respect the receptionist’s role and understand that they are in a position to assist you. If after you have been given your results by the receptionist you require further medical information, then the receptionist will be happy to ask the clinician to call you.
To ask for your test results telephone (from 11.30am - 6.30pm Monday to Friday) the surgery number (0118) 973 2678 and select option 3.
|
