"The system you have in place does not work"

This whole system you have in place does not work. I tried to get an appointment for my husband who has recently had surgery, I walked into the surgery to request an appointment but was told I would need to ring the following day.

I then requested an appointment on engage and consult at 7:00 am. This was followed by several unproductive phone calls and eventually by mid afternoon my husband was told by the receptionist to go to A&E

He spent 6 hours waiting in the hospital for something that could have been dealt with at a 10 minute GP visit. For someone who is feeling poorly this kind of treatment seems almost inhumane

Why can we not make an appointment to see a doctor? What was wrong with the previous method of ringing, explaining the problem and being booked in either for that day or another in advance.

My husband has been advised by the hospital to book in to see his doctor, but we have no idea how to do this.