"A surgery is only as good as it’s staff"

Once wrote a glowing report of this surgery: longstanding staff who knew their patients and their patients’ families. You could always get through; it didn’t matter so much who you saw - all the nurses and GPs were exceptional and scored highly against other Rochdalians reviewing their own local surgery.

We were often up near the top in the ratings.

Don’t know how far from the bottom we’d be now.

There are at least two institutions I can think of where you must exercise diplomacy in dealing with the public, one is financial and the other is medical. At Yorkshire Street there is now a receptionist who sits at the furthest point from the desk and shouts across the room ‘can I help you?’ The standard reply from patients should be ‘not from this distance.’ Please don’t encourage them by shouting your personal requirements across the void between. How embarrassing.

The signing in process is quick if you know it is there and are computer literate. When the next staff training session kicks in, how about suggesting staff show patients what to do, instead of barking ‘you’re supposed to have signed yourself in’ to people who clearly need help doing so.

Thank God they have got rid of the awful practice manager who saw off some wonderful staff afterprevious doctors left, but there’s a hill to climb to get to Yorkshire Street and another one once you are inside. Sort out the staff.Sort out the training. WE pay for this service; start delivering it.

For God’s sake please employ a permanent third doctor. Bring back continuity of care. Let’s get to know our GPS and surgery staff.

You have an award winning building to work in and, a competent healthcare assistant, who is pleasant to deal with.

The doctor I saw earlier this year (who wasn’t permanent) was marvellous: time to talk, time to explain things. This is a very important consideration, not only because it makes for a better consultation, but their excellent English (always a bonus) is essential for the hard of hearing. Without the clearest pronunciation, words can’t be understood at all by my husband, who at least has deafness as a mitigating factor, but there have been times every member of my family hasn’t heard correctly in the consulting room either - and none of them are deaf.

Let’s all give Yorkshire St a chance to shine but it really needs to make significant changes during 2018 or more patients, me included, will leave.