Should we be able to see/communicate with gp/doctor now?

[Isittimegp]

I think I might be shot for this .

But is it not about time we should be able to get a gp Appointment be able to get through on the phone ect. I get covid effected alot of things I understand there will be a back log for operations and things like that.

But I have read several reviews at different practices. I have seen several from the same surgery say they have got through just for the receptionist to hang up.

Or on hold for over 40 mins to be told there's no Appointments. Call back request not happening ect .

How are people meant to get blood tests done . Or symptoms checked.

I do think for things like getting a basic gp Appointment covid is now being milked. I would not be surprised if its lead to deaths or more serious illness than it would have.

I know I will get shot for this post . But its extremely upsetting for ill /vulnerable people and frustrating for others.

Why does a receptionist not answer the phone ?

Why hang up on people ? (It's not an accident once it happens several times)

We can and so can most of my friends and family and had reasonable service in lockdowns. One couple we know have severe difficulties with theirs but this seems to be unusual. They are a right pair of moaners though

I think you need to change doctors or speak to the practice manager.

I work at a surgery and we have no problems as you have stated.

I go to another surgery and also no problems.

For what it's worth gps have never stopped seeing people.

Yes, definitely.

We've had the choice of phone or video appts all the way through. We request it online with short description of the problem and we get back either an appt slot or redirected to someone else who can help - practice nurse, pharmacist etc.

YANBU. Our surgery seems to have a covid break every month when they say don't phone for routine things. Repeat prescriptions, you used to be able to phone them and the meds would be at the pharmacy 2 days later. Now I have to go into the drs surgery (which costs £10 on the bus) and fill out a form. Then it's over a week before the prescription is ready and it costs me another £10 on the bus to go and get it. Then repeat next month.

My GP definitely stopped seeing people. They won't even allow prescription pick ups from the surgery, they have to go to the pharmacy which inexplicably takes a week, then the pharmacy is short staffed so closes early. This happens even if you are desperate and really need it quicker.
I have friends on other practices which are worse.
I think the receptionists, of whom there is a cast of thousands, would claim there are no problems.

Similar issue here. No e-consult, phone at 8am for same day only call back but no phone queuing system. You have to constantly redial and hope someone answers. Appointment line won’t be answered after 8.15 as all slots will have gone by then.

The GPs are excellent and the admin staff are as helpful as they can be under the circumstances. Not their fault the area has grown massively and they are 2 FTE GPs down, as well as several other medical staff.

Can’t switch surgeries because all others in the area will only take patients with no current access to a GP.

Not enough GPs to meet demand in many areas.

GP numbers have been falling, as UK pop. gets older and needs more healthcare.

Complete failure of Govt to get more trained over the last decade and Brexit caused EU GP's to leave.

YANBU. Our surgery seems to have a covid break every month when they say don't phone for routine things

That's why my appointment was cancelled. I can't change GP as others locally are not accepting new patients.

Some people on this thread, presumably in other areas, sound fortunate, as it's not my experience of being able to get appointments. I have a couple of minor issues I'm probably going to have to go private for. I'd be added to a long waiting list, of years, if I did manage to see my GP. I'm doing an online consultation this week privately for one thing, probably the least expensive to treat I hope.

How are people meant to get blood tests done

Our GP surgery simply don't do them anymore. They now refer patients to "open" sessions in our two local hospitals' outpatient's departments, where you go, take a numbered card, and wait in turn, along with a everyone else in the crowded waiting room. They stopped doing them during the covid lockdowns and simply never re-started. Presumably it's cheaper for them to pay "per blood test" to the local hospitals rather than pay staff to do them in house.

It goes back far longer than the last decade. We've had GP shortages since the 80's. Blair apparently "solved" the crisis in the early noughties with his new GP contract offering more money for fewer hours and opting out of evening/weekend work (as apparently that was what was putting off people wanting to be GPs). That worked well, didn't it!

Didn't help that the BMA voted to ban opening new medical schools and ban a proposed increase in medical school places.

DH was a GP until last autumn when after 20 years he’d had enough. GP’s continued to see patients throughout Covid. The problem is that there are more people wanting appointments than there are available. Like DH, GP’s are leaving and not enough trainee doctors want to become a GP .

Unfortunately not all GP practices have signed up for an e-consult system. Ours hasn't nor has our son's. Nor do they offer any online appointments. It's basically the 8am phone call lottery and once the appointments have gone (both telephone and in-person) for that day (usually by about 8:15), you're stuffed. However important/urgent your problem, the receptionists will just parrot the "phone at 8am tomorrow) comment - they won't make an appointment for another day and won't add you to that day's list - no exceptions. They don't allow walk-ins to make appointments either - the doors are closed until 8.30, so if you do walk in, you get the same "all appointments gone" mantra from the receptionist.

I love those saying "change surgeries '. Where I live that isn't possible. We have a practice in our village linked to the only practice in town A 5 miles away. In town B - 5 miles in the other direction, 2 out of the 3 GP practices have closed with all patients living in the town transferred to the remaining one. Those who live outside the town have been forced to remove themselves from the list and register with the GP surgery in their 'catchment' (I thought catchments had been abolished but not here obviously). Our surgery, likewise, kicked people out to make space for those who needed to register because they couldn't stay at the town B surgery. So basically there is NO choice.

It takes forever to get through on the phone. E consult has just been suspended as they're switching to a new system. I've lost count of the number of times they've posted on Facebook that their phone system isn't working (it was only installed about 12 months ago!) DH had a call from them 2 weeks ago to book a routine health check appointment. He asked for one first thing or last thing as he works 26 miles from home. They said they couldn't do that!? They'll send him a letter instead! It hasn't arrived yet but I did point out to naive DH that this just meant he would now spend hours trying to get through to them on the phone to be told (when he eventually gets through) that he can't have an appointment 1st thing or last thing! So he's going to end up taking a day's AL anyway.

I love those saying "change surgeries '. Where I live that isn't possible.

Indeed. In our town there simply isn't another surgery. All small surgeries merged into one "super surgery" about 20 years ago. It's been an absolute disaster. It now has several "branches" of the same GP practice but you can't choose which to go to as you're always forced to go to wherever there is an appointment that day (if you're deemed worthy of an appointment). So, no choice of where to go, and certainly no choice of changing and registering with a different practice. The practices in the next town don't take on patients from this town, so all residents of the town are basically stuck with the same GP practice who have put themselves in a position of having a captive audience so can treat them as badly as they wish!

There’s a shortage of GPs and has been for a long time. Covid and Brexit has decimated the workforce.

Cast your mind back to 2019 pre Covid. It wasn’t that easy to see a GP!

Now we’ve got a global pandemic and backwards Brexit making it even worse.

Didn't help that the BMA voted to ban opening new medical schools and ban a proposed increase in medical school places
In 2008???

The BMA don’t determine these things so did that vote have an effect?

I rang at 8am this morning and got a message saying all appointments were booked and unless it was urgent or to book a routine appointment (it's neither) to call this afternoon for an appointment tomorrow. I could book a telephone call through the NHS website for August 2nd.

They've done away with the online forms and you can now only ring them or go in person to make an appointment. What could possibly go wrong when the next message on the website is apologising for problems with the phones? If I go down in person no doubt I won't be the only one and they needn't think I'll be telling the receptionist what's wrong if there's a queue!

Next tip. If you arrange a call back. Answer the sodding phone! It's not a surprise is it? And yes there may have been a lot of different things happen that morning but the GP will call. If the GP calls and asks to see you make yourself available. After all. You're the one that phoned.

How about giving a time slot rather than 'some time this morning'? Strangely enough I might need the loo during the whole morning.

Good point about the time slot. Ours give ‘any time between 10-6’ which is really unhelpful when my diary is full of teams calls and I have a dog who needs frequent walking. The chances of getting an appointment on a day where I’ve got a clear diary and my son is here to help with said dog are almost zero.

(it wasn't that hot)

I was once told that dehydration wasn't an emergency. According to the medical leaflet that came with my medication, it was! She reluctantly gave me an appointment after I asked again and told me to stop googling.

The e consult system has changed where I am. You explain your issue, what you want the doctor to do and the times you're not avaliable. Twice in the last week I've been given times that I said I won't be around.

I received a call yesterday. 1 hour later than they planned to, which by the time everything was sorted, meant I didn't have time to do what I needed. Only had 4 phone calls in the last few weeks to sort out an issue and I don't think I'm still getting anywhere.

Good point about the time slot. Ours give ‘any time between 10-6’ which is really unhelpful when my diary is full of teams calls and I have a dog who needs frequent walking.

It is unhelpful and a time slot ought to be given. In the current financial climate people cannot afford to take a full day off to await a phone call, or at short notice for those same day 8am phone-scramble for appointments you may or may not (more likely) secure.

I would have thought that GP receptionists weren't qualified to decide what was and wasn't an emergency. It's quite concerning if some are deciding this.

The BMA don’t determine these things so did that vote have an effect?

Yes, because the BMA essentially told the Labour gov what it’s policy should be.

They’re not going to argue with their paymasters.

Absolutely. It's down to the BMA membership to train new doctors, so it's all a matter of goodwill between the doctors, BMA and government as to how many doctors are actually trained on placements (and of course doctors are usually the ones giving the academic training in the medical schools). Should the Labour govt at that time have told the BMA to sod off with their vote, there'd almost certainly have been some kind of "work to rule" to restrict the number of training places anyway. Otherwise, what would be the point of holding a vote in the first place. The BMA isn't powerless, it has a lot of power and can help dictate policy,.

My GP surgery is amazing and continued to be amazing all through Covid. I've never not got an appointment when needed and they also arranged a community nurse to do my monthly blood tests.

Receptionists are also lovely.

My surgery offers an online booking system but when you log on there is nothing available for the next three months! So the only option if you want an appointment is to go through the telephone lottery, involving continuous redialling and epic waits.
Every surgery in my area is the same so no option to move to s different one.