Ways to book your appointment

Urgent/Same Day

These can be booked from 08:00 on a daily basis for both the morning and afternoon sessions and are available for urgent or emergency cases only.

Routine/Pre-bookable

If your condition is not an emergency and can wait please ask for a routine appointment. Receptionists will offer you an appointment with a Doctor up to 2 weeks in advance and a Nurse Practitioner/Nurse/HCA up to 4 weeks in advance.  Please contact reception in the usual way from 10:00 to 17:00 (Monday to Friday) to book. 

On-line Bookings

We have on-line appointments available each week, which you can self-book. PLEASE ASK THE RECEPTION TEAM ABOUT REGISTERING FOR ON-LINE APPOINTMENTS

Evening appointments

Routine Thursday late evening appointments are available for those who have difficulty making appointments during the day.  These are all pre-bookable appointments with a Doctor, Nurse Practitioner and Healthcare Assistant.

Appointments with Nurse Practitioners

We have highly skilled nurse practitioners who can treat several conditions:

• Acute back pain, joint sprains
• Acute Chest infections
• Allergies
• Bites
• Conjunctivitis, sticky discharging eye, sty
• Cystitis
• Diarrhoea, constipation, piles
• Dizziness, giddiness, unusual headache
• Earache, swollen glands
• Emergency contraception
• Exacerbation of Asthma
• Exacerbation of COPD
• Oral thrush
• Period problems
• Post op wound problems
• Raised temperature that does not improve after one week of pharmacists' advice and home treatment
• Shingles
• Tonsillitis, cough, sinusitis, sore throat, colds and flu-like illnesses (NB a cough may persist for up to three or four weeks after other cold/flu symptoms have gone)
• Urinary tract infections
• Vaginal thrush, soreness, lump or discharge
• Vomiting
• Wounds, scalds, burns, rashes

If a doctor’s appointment is not available please ask for a nurse practitioner appointment.

Please note these appointments are not for children under 2 years.

Our Nurse Practitioner also manages long-term conditions such as asthma, eczema, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, raised cholesterol levels and respiratory disease. 

Telephone Advice

We can often help you with telephone advice to save you coming to the surgery. This can be offered for blood tests, x-ray results, medication advice and some sick notes. Please phone after 10:00am.

 Other Advice

Appointments are for one person at 10-minute intervals and are for 1 medical problem only.  If you know you need a longer consultation, please ask the receptionist for a double appointment.

If you phone before 08:00 you will just be held in a ‘holding queue’ for the out-of-hours message. Please do not phone before 08:00 unless you are actually ringing for the out-of-hours information.

We cannot always guarantee an appointment with a doctor of your choice however if a doctor for a particular condition is treating you we recommend that you complete the treatment with the same doctor, wherever possible.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the slot to someone else.  If you booked on-line then please remember to cancel on-line if you no longer need the appointment.

You can also text 07494 886857 to cancel you appointment, please text your full name, date of birth, date and time of appointment.

PLEASE NOTE: THIS NUMBER DOES NOT RECEIVE INCOMING CALLS OR PICK UP VOICEMAILS

Home Visits

A home visit should only be requested for patients who are genuinely too ill to attend surgery and strictly housebound. It takes at least four times as long to see a patient at home as it does in surgery, so please help us to help you and our other patients by visiting the surgery whenever possible. It is also more difficult to assess a patient thoroughly at home without surgery facilities.

Please note that not having your own transport is not a valid reason for requesting a home visit!

Please be ready to give details of name, address, telephone number and if possible, the nature of the illness. If you are not the patient i.e. a carer or relative please give your contact details in case the doctor needs to call you. This assists the doctors in arranging their visiting list.

All requests are to be made before 10.30am if at all possible.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)