With apologies for a missing week of sharing the results, time ran away from the practice manager last weekend. Those comments are included below.
Far too difficult to get appointments. Doctors/Nurses are great when you actually see them.
With our assessment of need system, a clinician assesses the details the patient has shared with the receptionist. Based on this assessment, it is the clinician’s decision whether an appointment with a GP is the appropriate outcome for the patient or if there is a better solution for the patient. This outcome is then shared with the patient via text or phone call. The current system should hopefully ensure that those patients where the best option is a GP appointment actually get one.
I am still waiting fir a chest xray. Tuesday this week I saw the doctor he put me in the system for xray but no appointment yet…in the meantime my coughing has got worse and bringing up flem all be it clean and I now feel tired and bad headaches….so overall not really happy
We wonder whether this patient actually went to reception to collect the details of how to book an x-ray appointment. We have put this one on the to-do list to send this patient the details on how to book an x-ray at the hospital tomorrow. Fortunately, this patient left contact details with the comment, so we can action this.
Excellent service. Gemma explained the risks associated with a live vaccine to my satisfaction and the injection went well.
We agree, Gemma is a valued member of our nursing team.
Got an appointment next day Dr Lannon was very good diagnosed problem provided medication same day booked hospital appointment same day I was very impressed very thorough top job
We are pleased to hear this patient had a positive experience.
I had to queue on the phone for 20 minutes to speak to a receptionist then when I received a text detailing who I was to see waited 35 minutes. This if far too long. Should have been advised if I was to see the nurse I could have made the appointment in person!! Also when trying to make original appointment I had to try & describe what problem was. Not everyone will be articulate & describe what’s wrong.Needs improvement .
From the above comment, we understand there were several points where we need to improve:
- 20-minute queue on the phone is too long – this is unfortunately not within our control as it depends on how long the previous person is on the phone for. Not everything can be dealt with within a few minutes. We are sorry the patient had to wait this long.
- 35-minute wait to hear an outcome was far too long – this is not a bad turn-around, really. There are many calls coming in per day and it will take the clinician time to assess each one and decide on an outcome. Patients will receive an outcome the same day or at least within 24 hours.
- The need to describe a problem is too difficult for some patients – unfortunately, we can only assess the need when we know what the problem assessing is. The patient doesn’t need to bring us a diagnosis, but we need to know what symptoms or problem the patient needs help with to help them best.
Thank you for all you do
You are very welcome. We do our best.
I was very satisfied with my appointment and the follow-up procedure.
We are glad to hear this.
I was seen on time and the nurse was very friendly
l believe that Dr Maters and his team has always provided an excellent professional service for myself and my family.
Over last few months it’s been easier to get an appointment with my go. Thank you.
This is also what we believe to be true despite some complaints from patients about the new system. We have noticed that more people who need to see the doctor rather than those who want to be seen but might be served better with another solution.
The lady who did my smear test (sorry I didn’t get her name!) was the best person I’ve ever seen at a doctors surgery. She made me feel so comfortable when I was already nervous and explained everything so carefully. Would highly recommend her to anyone!!!!!
We are pleased to hear that. We know our nurses always aim to make our patients feel comfortable and it is great to hear they are successful in doing so.
The staff were very helpful and friendly and I received the care that I required. Thank you.
On this occasion I was pleasantly surprised by support I received from receptionist over the phone when booking an appointment. Dr Bell is always great – the best doctor in the practice, full of knowledge and support as well. Didn’t have such a good experience with one of the receptionist in Grimethorpe and nurse in there but I can surely say it did improve a lot since then.
So glad to hear this patient feels our receptionists’ approach has been supportive and they have improved. We have a few new ladies and believe these are great assets to the practice.
All seems to be working well for me. I am receiving the care needed promptly and by the same doctor for continuity of care.
We won’t always be able to offer a patient to see the same doctor every time, or the one of their choice, but when this is possible or advisable, it is what we aim for.
It’s good to see a Doctor face to face and get some perspective on your condition
The majority of the appointments are as face-to-face. Only where it is patient preference, for medication reviews and a few other appointments, we arrange a telephone appointment instead.
Still taking weeks to get appointments I work early morning took 3 weeks of calling every day after work before I got to see a GP on some occasions I was on hold over 45 minutes before anyone even answered I have a patient alert card due to the medication I self inject so any infections have to be treated ASAP as I’m immune suppressed was told by receptionist at Cudworth it wasn’t worth the paper it’s written on and does not entitle me to special treatment I don’t want special treatment just an appointment. Have had to resort to using 111 more than once
We think there may have been some miscommunication here. Our receptionists can’t book appointments with a GP directly. They should take details of the patient’s symptoms and place the patient on the assessment of needs list. A clinician assesses these details and decides what the best solution is. They will offer the appointment if appropriate, or advise on a different outcome if this is more appropriate, including advising to contact i-Heart for a same-day appointment where this is required and none are left available at the surgery. Someone shouldn’t have to phone back daily any longer. In some cases, we have noticed that patients who were advised to go to i-Heart, refused to do so and tried their luck the next day, and the day after that possibly too. If a clinician advises you to go to i-Heart, they feel you need to be seen the same day and it is best to take this advice.
Always be happy with my Doctor
Friendly, helpful and professional always. Nothing is ever too much trouble. Thankyou.
The trouble is that most times you can’t get through on the phone for appointments it’s always engaged or just rings and when and if you are lucky enough to get through you usually find that all appointments have been booked so in the end you just give up trying to get an appointment because this happens on most of the days that you try to get an appointment..
Although our telephone system is significantly improved from how it was, it is still in no ways perfect. Nor will it ever be. We hope the system has improved sufficiently to provide patients with a better chance. Where your query is of a non-urgent medical nature or administrative, you can also use the online consultations platform. (https://florey.accurx.com/p/C85018)
We process the online consultation requests daily on working days, but there may be a delay of 3 working days before we respond. Although it is often less than that, we advise our patients to NOT use this platform for urgent medical queries.
I wanted to see the doctor, but was given advice from the technician/nurse although she was very polite and professional I didn’t get past her to see the doctor.
We wonder who this patient saw. We don’t have any technicians in the surgery, but we have an advanced nurse practitioner and a physician associate. Both ladies work on a similar level to the GP and will often be able to deal with the problem. Where they are not able to do this, they will seek advice from a GP.
The receptionists are simply the best, so kind and helpful thank you so much xx
The nurse was lovely she took my bloods with care hardly felt it and she spoke to me all way through and put me at ease
It is increasingly difficult to get a doctors appointment. X was given an appointment the next day. However I know a number of people that are not given appointments both young and old.
Unfortunately, the demand for appointments far outweighs our capacity. That is why we have an assessment of needs system where the available appointments are allocated based on the assessment of needs.
The GP I had seen and spoke to on 19th September 23 was very efficient
Do you think the practice has improved in the last 12 months?
The way the practice is now ran can be a bit tricky if your ringing for a child but then having to wait to see if you can get an out of hours appointment at the end of the assesment, although I don’t visit very frequently I cannot see anything significant
What are we doing particularly well?
Offering appropriate services where they are needed
What do you feel we can improve on and how?
Due to one of my most recent visits, I feel that I have been strongly let down by a member of staff,who has in fact had Me reported as an abusive patient when in actual fact during the consultation she had Me confused and when I went to question something I cried because I didn’t understand, I was not abusive or intimidating I tried to hand her back paperwork in which she would not take. This appointment was 7th September 2023, I strongly feel that If staff are looking and treating patients who are coming in for mental health problems they need to understand that they need to keep things simplified and not confuse the patient. Because instances like this will happen and occur, I understand there must be a fine line of feeling abused however I feel deeply offended that I was reported and more upset knowing i had caused the gp upset. As this is something I would not do.
We can’t comment on this case any further than to mention that how two people perceive the same situation can be completely different. Our staff members don’t tend to overreact and will often accept more than they rightfully should. Still, we don’t accept abusive behaviour or language.
