To complain to GP practice?

Can you ask the receptionist when they release the general non urgent appointments? My surgery releases them two weeks ahead at midday on Tues and you can book on phone or app. They all get booked up pretty quickly within hours. If you know when they are released you can try and hover over the phone for them

If you can afford it, make an appointment with a private dermatologist or plastic surgeon. You should be able to get the price of a private consultation over the 'phone.

Boots offers a mole scanning service. Not an affordable service for everyone but it might help some.

https://www.boots.com/healthhub/skin-services/mole-scanning-service

Agree, but I suggested this as a possible shortest path to a resolution. I’m also in favour of the complaint process and have used it myself with good result. Meanwhile, though, the health issue is waiting to be addressed.

Call. Mid morning when the receptionists are likely to be slightly less busy. Explain you tried for two week at the 8am time but can’t get through. Explain you have changing moles you are worried may be cancer and ask them if there is anything they can do. Be polite. My surgery have then fitted me in because it has been urgent. Or try seeing a pharmacist first and then you can do all of the above saying pharmacist said you need to see a gp (and that is what they say). I can never get through in the morning but if I wait and explain things politely they almost e always got a few appointments for urgent cases.

This thread is so depressing ....are we really suggesting that the only way to get a doctor appointment is to write an actual letter and enclose a photo..it's 2024. Moving surgeries is often not feasible and why on earth should OP need to go privately.. she has an NHS GP (just about). I think you have no option but to make a formal complaint if only to highlight the awful systems they have in place at your surgery. All GP surgeries are under pressure but some are managing better than others. If we all just accept this situation and either ignore our symptoms or go privately nothing is going to improve.

Is there not a duty doctor you can speak to? At my last 2 surgeries there were same day appointments, which of course went immediately, but for something genuinely urgent there was also the duty doc you could speak to. At this point I would be calling it genuinely urgent considering you should be seen very quickly with these symptoms. I’m not sure a complaint will get you anywhere TBH. My only other suggestion is to speak to 111 and see if they can get you a same day appt (have had to do that before as well when the receptionist told me no more appointments). Please keep trying, I was fobbed off by 2 different GPs when I had skin cancer (told it was nothing), had to go private to get it removed, thankfully it doesn’t seem to have spread. Early intervention is essential.

I would complain. The service is just not good enough.

I agree about ringing 111 or even threatening to. I told the receptionist at my surgery that if I rang 111 they would refer me back to the surgery (which they had on a previous occasion) and they gave me an appointment for a call from the doctor.

Or actually ring 111 of course.

See my post recently too...... I got a GP call back after calling 111. Ending up getting his call at 7.20pm.

Called 111 thr next day to book for an appointment at the local urgent treatment centre. Got an out of hours GP appointment for the saturday. Surgery on konday (gall bladder.....I was a funky yellow colour!!)

They also suggested the Push Doctor part of their service.

Not RTFT but, rather than complain, write a letter to the practice manager saying that you've had a change in moles which could be skin cancer, detail the contacts you've made so far and can they now explain how you are supposed to access help for suspected cancer. They will find you an appointment, it should not be this hard to access urgent care.

My friend had a mole that was concerning her and was also unable to get a doctors appointment. She called 111 who advised her to go to the urgent treatment centre at our local hospital.

She was told she did the right thing at the hospital as it’s important not to leave these things and cancer needs to be ruled out.

If it’s affecting you by making you worry as well I’d ring 111 and ask them advice.

I used to go to a practice who did same day appointments only. I would call repeatedly two minutes before phone line opened so that I was one of the first through soon as it open.

So say it opened at 8am, I would press redial from 7.58am which always meant I was able to be one of the very first through once phone lines opened.

Maybe give that a go?

Does your area have an urgent care walk in centre? Usually based in a hospital they have GPS/nurse practitioners. You could also call 111. They might be able to book you in with your doctor or an urgent care centre.

You're going to need to go the route of complaints, but in any event the only thing you can do (if you can't go private) is to keep calling on the dot every single morning.

All that said - it's not the GP's cum receptionists' fault - this is the system working to its ultimate goal. For what little it's worth I went through a similar thing with my GP and would turn up in person even if it was 'against the rules'. I'd say you could do your bit with your vote but I'm not sure that counts for much, if anything, anymore.

Do any nearby pharmacies offer a mole scanning service? Some of my local ones (not UK) do, and images are sent to a dermatologist.

You should make a complaint.. as of last year GPs are contractually obligated to respond to requests. They don't necessarily have to offer you and appointment, but they can't ask you to call back tomorrow. This article explains it:

https://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/news/contract/new-contract-does-not-mean-gps-have-to-offer-appointment-on-first-contact/

If you’ve told them why you need an appointment and still can’t get one then yes I would most definitely complain. It’s just not acceptable.
I’d also visit the surgery in person to speak to the receptionist and failing that,
I’d also phone 111 and say you think a mole may be cancerous and you can not get an appointment.

Where I live the pretty much only way to get an appointment is to call 111, explain your symptoms and be clear that you can't get an appointment. Almost certainly the call handler will be familiar with your surgery. Somehow they manage to force the surgery to give appointments if there's a clear need.

We are not in the catchment area of any other GP surgery unfortunately.

In that case, I'd do what Tinybigtanya suggested, keep it brief and explain you've tried on numerous occasions to get an appointment for x amount of time, enclose a photo and tell them you're anxious to exclude cancer.

My surgery is the same and the only way to get an appointment is showing up in person and waiting until there's something later that day. They usually keep some free emergency appointments later in the afternoon.

Failing that book a private appointment

This may help…when I worked as a receptionist and a patient wrote to a doctor (pen and paper), the letter was scanned into their permanent notes and reviewed / dealt with by a doctor to close out the enquiry as it were. Maybe include a photo.

If only it was as simple as that. 🙄
Most people can’t afford private and it’s not easy to change surgeries.

Maybe the OP can't afford private. It's not that easy to change surgeries always.