Why is this so difficult for the GP's surgery?

[OrangePowder]

DH needs regular medication. The system at our GP's is you have to email a request 3 days before you need it.

DH's is a controlled drug and there's often delay in having it signed off, so I like to check it's been sent before wasting my time and the chemist's going to try and collect.

They never acknowledge the email. So, I phone the surgery which literally takes all day even to get into the queue and then wait on hold for at least 30 min. Their system can only take 10 in the queue, if it's more than that it just cuts you off.

Anyway, I have suggested to the practice manager that if they just replied to the email once the prescription has been sent, it would vastly improve my "customer experience" and also reduce the number of calls going through their switchboard.

For some reason she's "not sure if that's possible".

Do they send their scripts out electronically to the pharmacy?

@Angelmonkey

GP surgeries receive upwards of 100 emails daily, admin staff are usually answering phones, managing reception as well as trying to keep on top of emails. It isn’t possible for each email to be answered individually - it would be a full time job! Can you not arrange for the pharmacy to contact you once they prescription is ready? Most pharmacies offer this service

Replying to 100 emails doesn't take one person a whole day. A simple "received" would suffice. You can make a rule that means you can click one button to generate the correct response. It's not really a good reason. They just don't want to.

Technology is the answer and some GP are unwilling to embrace it unfortunately despite all the funding available from NHS England

I think staff are scared about technology changing primary care. But it will bring benefits in terms of improved care, convenience and more time for patient care.

We shouldn’t be waiting for the surgery to pick up the phone in 2021. There are better solutions out there.

Changing GP surgery is your only option I think.

For some reason she's "not sure if that's possible

They really are in a class of their own aren't they? Any private organisation that "operated" this way (or not, as you can't really call what they do operating, or functioning at all) they wouldn't last a week.