GP Appointments

[ellie09]

Why are they so difficult to get one?

I've had trouble with my sinuses since beginning of September which has significantly worsened this week to the point I have blurry vision, swollen forehead, sore eyes, sore ears and a horrible headache.

My GP surgery, you have to call at 8:45 and its first come, first serve for that day, you can't make advance appointments.

I call to the very second at 8:45 every morning and receive a "full capacity" message and the call drops. Redial in total 85 times in 30 minutes and get a message at 9:15 telling me all the appointments are now gone.

How on earth does one get to see their GP?

I am going away in a few weeks and the last time I went abroad like this, the air pressure in the plane made my entire face swollen and my eyes close up and had to go straight to A&E when I landed home.

Sorry, this is just a rant.

I feel sorry for the old and vulnerable who are getting more sick and can't see a doctor.

Just go via the NHS 111 service. If they assess you need a doctor's appointment they will either give you a code to give your surgery which will mean they have to give you an appointment, or they will have an on call clinician call you back. GL

Absolute same at ours, so we basically don't have a GP. 111 have been fairly helpful when we've been desperate!

That’s really poor. Many many surgeries now have online forms where you can request stuff (eg I got antibiotics last week without seeing anyone - sent a photo of infected finger and voila, prescription sent to pharmacy) and one doctor goes through all the forms that come in overnight the next morning, giving people phone/in person appointments or sorting things like my antibiotics as necessary. They always always see kids. I don’t bother ringing anymore, just do the form and they can decide if I need an actual appt or not. Wish all surgeries did this system!

Tory government.

I'd also call 111 and tell them that you can't get a GP appointment but you need one. I've done it before and they've given me an OOH appointment

Only way I’ve got one fast and same day is when I’ve been pregnant. It’s madness. Prior to that I waited 3 weeks for an appointment only for the doctor to ring and I apparently “missed his call” even though I had my phone on loud attached to me all morning!

Fewer GPs and the government has been reducing the numbers they’ve been training. Sicker population, in part due to covid delays as well as as increasing older population in complex issues. And larger population.

It’s a shit situation.

Some surgery have online service where you see an completely random GP online.

I’m sorry you are having this problem.
I am very lucky that this never seems to happen at my surgery (not to me anyway). They have an online service where you fill in the details and then if you mark it ‘same day’ I have had call backs within 2-3 hours and had a telephone appointment with the GP. If you mark it ‘non urgent’ then I have had a call back within 2-3 days and again a telephone appointment.

I suggest you try 111 .

That's crap. Not all GPs are that bad. My child had a weird rash. I phoned the surgery mid-morning. They told me to bring them in at 3pm. I did. They were seen 15 minutes later, given a prescription and we picked up what we needed at the pharmacy on the way home. That's how it should work.

The problem is lack of funding and problems recruiting enough staff.

It’s the same system at my GP practice. It’s abysmal.

If I can’t get an GP appointment I usually ring 111 and explain then get allocated an appointment at a nearby “walk-in/same day health centre”.

Though I appreciate this service isn’t available everywhere.

My recent experience - which to me falls short of how it could be done easier

Received a text message from the Dr I had seen previously who had referred me for an x-ray on my hip. This message asked me to book a telephone appointment. Leaving the 'live' telephone scramble for urgent cases - I requested a phone appointment via an online message.

Still waiting after 5 days for them to get back to me.

Bear in mind - the Dr asked me to book the appointment.

Do they offer an e consult? I do one every time and always get a solution or an appointment the same day.

How on earth does one get to see their GP? Change your GP. Ours has an on-line triage. Last 3 times I’ve had 1. Same day text telling me I’d been referred to physio 2. Same day appt 3. Same day phone call from same doctor as had dealt with the matter previously.

People who can’t cope with internet ring receptionist who fills in triage form for them.

Another surgery in the area runs the “ring at 8.30” lottery system. I know, because the community facebook page is full of complaints

I would look at other surgeries in your area.
We have online triage and I always hear the same day for an app or prescription sent etc.

I would ring 111 they'll get you an app

I'm in Northern Ireland so I don't believe we have the same system. I'll likely try and call the OOH doctor later tonight and just explain how I can't get an appointment.

I do feel bad though as I know its not an "emergency" but I genuinely can't wait any longer as its only getting worse sadly!

I don't mind waiting on a queue, but to just continuously drop the line was winding me up big time. They don't even make appointments now if you go to the surgery, its all through the phone line

It's relatively easy to get a phone appointment or email advice at my GPs. Getting to see someone in person is much harder. Even most physio appointments at my practice are via phone. Surely a physio needs to see a patient' movement limitations?

We don't bother. If we're ever sick enough to need a doctor on that day then we go to the walk in clinic and wait.

I agree with the posters that suggest changing your G.P.

I think mine is really good. Phone almost always picked up by a human within 3 rings (even on a Monday morning).

eConsult submissions get a response from the G.P. or nurse within 24 hours. Same-day appointments are always available.

I have relatives at a different surgery in the same town - they do nothing but complain about the awful service, but won't consider changing!

My GP surgery doesn't accept this. We had a 111 dr say on a Sunday afternoon that my 18 month old needed to be seen within 24 hours and they sent a note to the GP surgery. The receptionist wouldn't give any kind of appointment, phone or face to face.

But I do tend to use 111, as it's the only place I can speak to a dr. I wait until the surgery closes so they don't send me back there, and then call. I just hope they don't tell me to see my GP in the morning, and are able to resolve it over the phone.

The simple answer is there is a significant shortage of GP’s- demand for appointments far, far outstrips supply in many surgeries. There are other complex reasons than just the shortage of gp’s but whilst there has been a decline in gp numbers there have been other factors at play making workload difficult. One significant factor is an increasingly elderly population who are not only living longer but most do so with multiple chronic health conditions and so require a lot of input. The significant waiting times in secondary care have also led to increase in demand for gp appointments -e.g. patients condition requires monitoring or treatment isn’t working or their condition is deteriorating. Or because patients are frustrated and want to complain to someone or want their gp to expedite their appointment. Pressure on beds means patients are often discharged before they would have previously and community care are having to visit these patients more often to monitor- in some areas the re-admission rates are reflecting that. To that you can add the genuine need for routine gp service for illness and chronic disease management etc. add on to that the increasing issues with mental health in patients of all ages. And then add onto that the significant increase in worried well (including parents re their children) which is noticeably worse since the pandemic.

Some surgeries are not helping themselves by setting up inefficient systems for managing appointments. Some surgeries will not be well run and yes, before anyone says it, there are certainly some gp’s who are lazy/don’t see as many patients as they could. In some surgeries, however, they are doing their best but are essentially fire fighting as their resources don’t even come close to managing demand. I’m a hospital dr but I have friends who are gp’s and there really are significant problems within primary care which are nothing to do with lazy gp’s- however much the media and some politicians would like you to believe it.

My surgery now has "total triage". Everyone goes through econsult, is triaged by a doctor, and put on various pathways. It works really well. If you need to be seen, you are, if you can have a call they set a half hour window for you, and apologises if late, if you can been seen by a nurse or physio, you are allocated there.

Our surgery also had etriage.

My other suggestion would be is if you have life insurance- lots of the companies offer same day Gp video consulting for free through the insurance....

For something like sinuses, I would head straight to the pharmacy.

Call 111, I got antibiotics after a telephone assessment which they sent electronically to the local pharmacy so worth a try

No. There isn't 111 here. Ring your local OOH as soon as GPs close. Hopefully they can sort it.