6th February 2016 by Jane Tennick

Telephone service

Our doctors have been struggling to cope with escalating demand for phone contact in recent years.

We will no longer routinely offer “telephone consultations”.

Reception staff will try to resolve your problem directly or may involve appropriate third parties, eg Practice Nurse, District Nurse, Midwife or local Pharmacist. If you still need to speak to the doctor, you can leave the doctor a “telephone message”. The doctor will read and respond to them all, but it may not result in a direct conversation or contact the same day. Urgent matters are not appropriate for telephone messages.

Our reception staff do their best to try and help you and us. Please do not put them under undue pressure. Briefly, don’t make unreasonable demands, make sure you provide a suitable contact number and answer your phone!

GP Appointments

The past two years have been difficult for us all and we thank you sincerely for your support and understanding during these very challenging and uncertain times.

Although the pandemic is far from over, we are slowly trying to reintroduce a more ‘normal’ service.

All patients have been assessed by telephone first before being invited in for a face to face appointment. This has been essential to control the flow of people through the health centre and keep the most vulnerable patients (and staff!) safe. Sadly, we have regularly been subject to the accusation that GP surgeries were closed. This has never been the case for any of the practices within the Health Centre.

However, as the impact of covid continues to decline, we are keen to begin reintroducing patient choice when booking a GP appointment.

From Monday 9th May you can request whether you would prefer a telephone or face-to-face appointment.

There will remain some exceptions to this. For example, if you have an infectious viral condition which does not require examination, you may be asked to speak to the GP or nurse by telephone first to assess the most appropriate treatment for you.

Telephone appointments have proved a popular and convenient option for many and these will remain included within each routine clinic.

Making an appointment

When you call to make an appointment, our experienced administration staff will ask you some brief questions to direct your call. Please be assured they are not being ‘nosy’ or difficult; they are highly trained to ensure your problem is dealt with the most appropriate professional. This may be an optician if you have an eye problem, your local pharmacy for minor ailments, or one of our in-house clinical team such as our physiotherapist or wellbeing nurse. If you need to see the doctor, you will be allotted to the soonest or most appropriate appointment.

Patient safety advice

Although many public areas such as supermarkets and pubs have had restrictions fully lifted, all healthcare settings remain subject to patient safety and infection control measures. We therefore ask that you:

· Wear a face covering at all times within the health centre and sanitise your hands before being seated in the waiting area.

· Attend alone for your appointment (if possible) to reduce crowding in smaller areas.

· Be mindful of others in the waiting area and maintain social distancing where possible.

Finally, we are currently experiencing unprecedented increasing demand. As a result, you may need to wait a bit longer to see the GP, especially if you want see a particular doctor. Please be assured we are trying our hardest to accommodate all appointment requests, prescriptions and other queries, every day. Please be kind to our staff who are trying to help you all with very limited resources.

Thank you.

Covid vaccinations

The roll-out of the covid vaccination programme is being co-ordinated by the Scottish Government. We are unable to advise patients at this time exactly if and when they might receive the vaccine but please be assured, if you are eligible, you will be contacted directly in due course.

Newsletter Sept 20

During the pandemic we have had to adapt and change our working methods which can understandably be confusing for patients who have been used to accessing services in a certain way for many years. Please click on our latest newsletter which answers some of the most common questions we are asked.

We will continue to assess and review our systems in response to government guidance but please be assured we are all working harder than ever to make sure all patients’ needs are met in these uncertain times.

Appointments	0141 531 6490
House calls	0141 531 6490
Results and enquiries	0141 531 6490
Prescriptions	0141 531 6383
Practice fax	0141 531 6493

Telephone service

Dr W. N. Chalmers & Partners

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