Appointments

 

For non-urgent issues, please follow the guidelines below and choose the right service. An appointment may not be necessary.

This will help us to be more efficient by making an appointment available to you when you need it the most.

Care Navigation

Please don’t be offended if you are asked what the problem is when you ring to book an appointment.

This is called Care Navigation and it’s about helping you get to the service you need!

About Care Navigation

Over the coming months you will notice your receptionist begin to ask for a brief outline of your problem when you ring to book an appointment.

This is because we are introducing something called 'Care Navigation'. It means we are training receptionists and clerical staff to help them help patients by identifying the most appropriate place for their care.

Through this specialist training, our practice team will be able to direct you to the most appropriate health clinician for your needs first.

Receptionists will never offer clinical advice or triage; this new way of working is about offering you the choice to see more appropriate professionals in the practice team or even somewhere else. If they can deal with the problem directly, it will often be quicker and means you may not need to see the GP at all. 

By working this way, it helps to free up time for GPs to care for patients with complex or serious health conditions that can only be managed by the GP. More importantly though, it means people are seen first by the clinician that is best placed to manage their clinical problem.

The choice is always yours though and you will never be refused a GP appointment but we hope next time you contact your GP and speak with the receptionist you will see the value of seeing another health professional if they are able to help.

If you would like someone to explain this to you in person, a member of our practice team will be happy to help.

The Care Navigator might suggest other professionals that could help you better such as:

  • Wellbeing service
  • Pharmacy
  • Psychological services
  • Nurse
  • Support groups

Book an Appointment

To make an appointment; please call us on 01622 726277. Our phone lines are open from 8.30am to 12pm and then 2pm to 6pm every week day.

Pharmacy & Self-Care

Pharmacy

Pharmacists are qualified healthcare professionals who can offer clinical advice, over the counter medicines to effectively and safely manage a range of minor health concerns. They can also help you to decide whether you'll need to see a doctor. You don't need an appointment and you won't even be asked to make a purchase. Every pharmacy also has a private consultation area for you to talk about your symptoms in private if you prefer.

Locate your local pharmacy

Self-Care

Help and support available from many National and Local Organisations

Visit our Self Help Zone

Urgent appointments for today (Monday to Friday)

For all urgent acute problems, please call from 8:30am.

We ask the receptionists to ask you to give them a little information about the problem you are calling about today; this is simply so they can direct you to the person who will be most suitable to help you with your problem. Of course, you don’t have to do this, but it will help us to help you. This information is entirely confidential.

Book a Routine Appointment

For routine appointments please call between 10am to 12pm, or 2pm to 6pm.

Sickness Certificates (Fit Notes)

Life Threatening - Go to A&E

Call 999 or go to A&E now if:

 
  • you or someone you know needs immediate help
  • you have seriously harmed yourself - for example, by taking a drug overdose

A mental health emergency should be taken as seriously as a medical emergency.

Find your nearest A&E

Change or Cancel an Appointment

If you are unable to keep your appointment, please give us as much notice as possible so that your appointment can be offered to someone else.

Cancellations notified less than 30 minutes before the appointment time will be recorded as failure to attend (DNA).

Repeated failure to attend booked appointments is a significant waste of NHS resources and may lead to your registration being removed from our list.

Ways to cancel

  1. Telephone us on 01622 726277.

Out of Hours

Enhanced Access

Extended hours includes face-to-face GP consultations and booked GP telephone consultations. We also provide some GP appointments on some Saturday mornings as well as early and late appointments with our Healthcare Assistants.

Please ask at reception and they will make you aware of the availability of these appointments as the rota may change from week to week.

Life Threatening

Call 999 or go to A&E now if:

 
  • you or someone you know needs immediate help
  • you have seriously harmed yourself - for example, by taking a drug overdose

A mental health emergency should be taken as seriously as a medical emergency.

Find your nearest A&E

Urgent But Not Life Threatening

Visit an urgent care centre if:

 
  • You have an urgent medical issue requiring on the day attention

Find Urgent Care Services

Non-urgent

Use NHS 111 if:

 
  • You need help now, but it's not an emergency

There will be someone to provide you with advice and to direct you to a clinician if it is necessary.

Visit NHS 111 Online

Chaperones

You are very welcome to be accompanied by a trusted friend or relative at your consultation if you wish.

Read our Chaperone Policy