"Disappointed"

One of the systems improvements at the Practice in the past four months has been to install a new telephone system that allows us to monitor every individual call and thereafter explain to our patients why there might have been a delay in answering.

In this case, it would be useful to understand what time you called and the number you called from, we can then offer an explanation on the delay in answering?

In terms of appointments, we will always offer an appointment to those patients who are managed through triage as urgent and this may be face to face with a Nurse, Pharmacist or a GP (but not always a GP).

The appointment offer may alternatively be a call back from one of our GPs rather than a visit to the Practice but these are always based on an assessment which our Reception staff conduct on behalf of the Clinicians.

We do appreciate your kind observations on the Receptionist however and will pass that back to them; we are also pleased that the appointment with the Doctor was so successful.

Finally and in terms of your frustrations around getting through on the telephone, we would never advise our patients to wait if there is an Emergency.

NHS England and other healthcare providers are clear that if a patient or member of the public are facing an emergency, then they should dial 999 for the Emergency services.

Getting through on the telephone has improved significantly since the installation of our new system but we would reiterate that if you face an Emergency then your first call must be to the Emergency Services.