Why is it so hard to get a doctors appointment?

[ryder8904 10]

Too many people living here now. That is the problem we all need to face up to.

 

Too many people, not enough resources or jobs.

[sedith 19]

The biggest problem is getting past the witches on the reception desk! They always try to discourage you from visiting the doctor and sometimes offer unqualified advice. It did it with me when the doctor is sat Googling my ailment ... hmmmm ... I can do that!

[Mr Bloom 10]

The biggest problem is getting past the witches on the reception desk! .... hmmmm ... I can do that!

 

I tend to agree.

 

Sorry, only joking there.

 

The receptionists are a reflection of the attitude of the arrogant, faceless "practice managers" who themselves are devoid of all social skills and care only of the "bottom line" and making the most out of patients by insisting on keeping premium phone line charges and automated switch boards.

[bladebeer 11]

Yay someone else knows of this besides me! I keep posting about it but people seem happier to keep complaining than pay attention to the advice and try and help themselves...

 

Perhaps everyone is not up with this technology.The older generation was not brought up using I pads and computers and smart phones ,and may wish to speak to a person instead of a machine, something that seems to be disappearing these days.

[spilldig 185]

It is always a week to get in to see my dr, if you want to see a specific one it is more like 2 weeks or more, when you do get there i have never met anyone less interested in what i have to say (and its not only me by the way i have spooke to others who get the same treatment), one of them almost falls asleep, not only that but you have to repeat everything you say at least 3 times... all you get by response is ummm? and a bored look, it really is disgusting and drives me mad, i am considering moving drs now i have had enough of the 2nd rate service

 

About the same as ours except it's about 3 weeks.

[Person6 10]

Getting an appointment at my surgery has been challenging fo some time now and I know people using other surgeries are having similar experiences. For some time appointments have only been available five or six weeks in advance. I phoned up on Friday to be told that none were avaiable at all but I could call at 8am on Monday morning to see if there were any cancellations. That is a non starter because you can be waiting 30 minutes to get through on the phone at any time before 10am, so I went to the surgery.

It's a while since I've been on Monday morning but it used to be the busiest time. There were three people waiting the waiting room was otherwise empty. In conversation with the receptionist, she told me that appointments were now released every few days and the best way of getting one was in the early hours of the morning on the internet. That day, six appointments had been released on two days in mid June but all had gone before the surgery opened at 8am. I asked how many doctors were on duty and she said two- it used to be six.She quietly showed me a poster that will be goiing up soon advertising appointments at a different surgery at a starting price of £35 per appointment.

Anybody having a similar experience?

[GoGo_dancer 10]

Our surgery does online appointment booking through the SystmOnline website as well as telephone appointments... they reserve certain times just for online booking so I'm always able to get an appointment within around 2 days that suit my working hours. Might be worth asking if your surgery has the same option?

[barleycorn 10]

My old Doctor's surgery at Grenoside ran a system alongside the appointments system whereby if you turned up by, IIRC, 10am you were guaranteed to be seen by 1pm. It could involve a wait but at least you would get seen. Why other surgeries can't run a similar system is beyond me... they also guaranteed an appointment within two weeks.

[max 13]

<snip> There were three people waiting the waiting room was otherwise empty. <snip>

 

Yes, things may not have improved overall but of the improvements that I can identify this is the major one. With an appointment system you're not faced with a barrage of coughs and sneezes when you turn up to see the doctor.

 

I prefer to turn up and find just 2 or 3 people waiting, it means that the doctor is getting through his appointments fairly efficiently with nobody having to wait too long.

[AlexAtkin 10]

Our surgery does online appointment booking through the SystmOnline website as well as telephone appointments... they reserve certain times just for online booking so I'm always able to get an appointment within around 2 days that suit my working hours. Might be worth asking if your surgery has the same option?

 

 

Mine used to open up slots at midnight which made getting an appointment online for the next morning really easy. Then they suddenly stopped offering ANY slots for my surgery, only the main one a bus journey away.

 

 

Now you can only book a call-back I believe.

 

I prefer to turn up and find just 2 or 3 people waiting, it means that the doctor is getting through his appointments fairly efficiently with nobody having to wait too long.

 

Never seems to work that way for me. There will only be one or two people there and STILL my appointment is late.

[nightrider 13]

Getting an appointment at my surgery has been challenging fo some time now and I know people using other surgeries are having similar experiences. For some time appointments have only been available five or six weeks in advance. I phoned up on Friday to be told that none were avaiable at all but I could call at 8am on Monday morning to see if there were any cancellations. That is a non starter because you can be waiting 30 minutes to get through on the phone at any time before 10am, so I went to the surgery.

It's a while since I've been on Monday morning but it used to be the busiest time. There were three people waiting the waiting room was otherwise empty. In conversation with the receptionist, she told me that appointments were now released every few days and the best way of getting one was in the early hours of the morning on the internet. That day, six appointments had been released on two days in mid June but all had gone before the surgery opened at 8am. I asked how many doctors were on duty and she said two- it used to be six.She quietly showed me a poster that will be goiing up soon advertising appointments at a different surgery at a starting price of £35 per appointment.

Anybody having a similar experience?

 

At my surgery you can always get an appointment within a few days to see a doctor, unless you want to see a specific doctor in which case it could take 2-4 weeks for one to be available. So it can be a pain for follow ups, but for a new issue I am happy seeing a random doctor.

[Baron99 775]

Our surgery does online appointment booking through the SystmOnline website as well as telephone appointments... they reserve certain times just for online booking so I'm always able to get an appointment within around 2 days that suit my working hours. Might be worth asking if your surgery has the same option?

 

Our surgeries, (shared surgeries at Carter Knowle Rd & Dore) also use the SystemOnline website. I've just checked. The first available Dr at Carter Knowle is Tues 29th May & Dore on the 30th.

 

Before all this was introduced, you could walk in either morning or afternoon & while you might have to wait for up to an hour to see.a Dr, you got to see one.

 

Under the new system you can still be sat there for an hour, even though you've been given a specific appointment time.