"The problems really add up"

I don't usually write online reviews but I feel I have to in this case, for the sake of anyone with mental health issues looking to become a patient here.

I have been a patient at St Leonard's Practice since April 2017. At first I saw a doctor who was great-- caring and helpful. I had recently had a nervous breakdown, and she encouraged me to start on a course of medication and to seek councelling. Because of my anxiety, I find it difficult making phone calls. She listened to my concerns about this and booked the next appointment for me in advance so that no phone call was needed. (The online booking system makes it nearly impossible to get an appointment when you need one-- you're often waiting 6 weeks.)

The start of my trouble began when my doctor left the Practice. I was in the middle of a course of antidepressants that the doctor and I realised wasn't working. It was left to her replacement to decide how we should proceed. Only I wasn't able to see this replacement doctor for several months. Instead I was given a string of temporary doctors who through no fault of their own were unfamiliar with my history. I was given new antidepressants which after several more weeks I realised weren't working. During that year it seemed like they were just going through the motions, trying me out on different low-grade medications in the hopes that one of them would work. In the meantime, my health was declining and I was forced to leave my job and put a significant career move on hold.

When I finally met my actual GP, he seemed nice enough. But it has been so difficult to see him. I either need to book online for an appointment 4 - 6 weeks in advance, or wait for him to call me back for an emergency phone appointment. I have told him that I don't handle phone calls well but that really seems like the only option.

Last week was the final straw. I had just had a phone appointment with my GP where he agreed to write up a prescription for me and forward it to the pharmacy next door. A couple of days later I went to the pharmacy to pick up the prescription, but they had no record of the prescription being sent. I went over to the Practice where I asked the receptionist if she could find my prescription there. She checked the whole system but couldn't find it. She concluded that the doctor must not have sent it. I was told to wait in the waiting room while she tried to get the duty doctor to write a new prescription for me. I sat there and had a panic attack.

I realise that to a person who is mentally healthy these issues would be minor annoyances. But for someone with depression and anxiety, they make you feel that no one is listening and that you'd be better off succumbing to your illness and harming yourself than asking for help again. I really hope there are better GP surgeries out there than this.