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Original poster

Is it right that gps are no longer seeing patients unless urgent?

26 replies

Tigerswife · 13/12/2021 22:44

Our surgery is saying they are no longer making appointments unless urgent in order to concentrate on boosters? Surely cannot be allowed. Daughter is having pains and was going to make an appointment. Don’t think it’s urgent, but needs sorting.

OP posts:
QueenOfHiraeth · 13/12/2021 22:52

I would expect they would triage your daughter to assess if it needs seeing or can wait a while so may be worth calling them

PinkDaffodil2 · 13/12/2021 22:54

That’s what we have been told but we already have routine appointments booked up for weeks ahead and no plans to cancel them. It’s all very well to say just keep seeing urgent things, cancer but how do you know who that is without at least a telephone consultation (and we’re being told to offer everyone face to face which further reduced capacity…)
Sorry not helpful! But it depends on the type of pains and if it’s something that can wait a month or be managed with home remedies or pharmacy input. And depends on your particular GP - lots are under staffed and barely managing. I hope she gets the help she needs.

GreenLunchBox · 13/12/2021 22:54

Our surgery is actually closing one day next week so they can do boosters

PinkDaffodil2 · 13/12/2021 22:55

It is allowed because the government has decided that’s what must be done. We got the same warning as you at 8pm on Sunday.

Bellabelloo · 13/12/2021 22:56

The main problem is it's the non-medically trained receptionists deciding what snd what isn't urgent! I have had a hacking cough for 3 months to the point that I vomit every day and have a constant headache from coughing so much. All of my PCRs are negative, so it's not urgent. But to me it is and I am terrified of getting covid when I'm already so sick.

GreenLunchBox · 13/12/2021 23:10

@Bellabelloo

The main problem is it's the non-medically trained receptionists deciding what snd what isn't urgent! I have had a hacking cough for 3 months to the point that I vomit every day and have a constant headache from coughing so much. All of my PCRs are negative, so it's not urgent. But to me it is and I am terrified of getting covid when I'm already so sick.
But why have you left it three months?
chinateapot · 13/12/2021 23:11

This is exactly what Boris asked GPs to do yesterday. The number of boosters being offered can be increased, but not without sacrificing other things. There is no extra capacity in the system.

Yellowcakestand · 13/12/2021 23:16

I went to the surgery this morning as I have called 28 times since Thursday and its constantly engaged or I get into the call queue to be cut off after 20 mins. They booked me an appointment but they didn't have any telephone slots so had to have a face to face appt in 3 weeks time. I don't need to take up a face to face but that's all they had.

I overheard the staff saying that they have been asked to work extra and set up vaccine stations in the corridor of the surgery.

WhatsitWiggle · 13/12/2021 23:18

It's short-term, probably only for 6 weeks or so. Everyone who can vaccinate needs to offer their time to the boosters to be anywhere near Johnson's new target. The original target was tricky enough.

mrshoho · 13/12/2021 23:24

I can empathise with GPs and other NHS services right now. I'm reminded of earlier on when the government/dfe would make an announcement about what schools would be doing the next day and that would have been the first schools actually knew about it! The NHS was effectively told 8pm along with the rest of us that they would be doing 1 million boosters a day. What could possibly go wrong?

1dayatatime · 13/12/2021 23:41

I see two main problems with this non urgent approach

  1. one of the main roles you f a GP is to assess in a very limited time whether the patient in front of you has a serious medical problem that needs further assistance and the time criticality of that treatment or someone who will simply get better through self help and time for example with rest, paracetamol, ice, etc. Unfortunately without seeing a patient it is difficult to determine if the patient still moly has a nasty cough that will clear up on its own or pneumonia where the patient urgently needs treatment or will die.

  2. at my GP at least, patients are asked if they would describe their ailment as urgent or not. Patients are not the best judge of this and you will have some patients with serious health problems in need of attention but are stoic and don't wish to be seen to be wasting the doctors time OR you will have some patients with minor ailments but to them it is urgent and that they will "demand their right to see a GP".

HolidayTime2021 · 13/12/2021 23:52

Our hasn't done in person since March 2020

RoseRedRoseBlue · 13/12/2021 23:54

No, this is absolutely not right. Access to a GP should not be denied in order to dish out the booster.

blueglasswithgreenspots · 13/12/2021 23:59

Presumably the logic is that if more people don't get the booster then widespread illness will have even worse effects on access to GPs (possibly for the urgent things too, then), so this is the lesser or two evils. It's very worrying though.

EveryFlightBeginsWithAFall · 14/12/2021 00:09

Ours haven't been doing many face to face anyway. They aren't doing boosters either

another doctors local to us has announced they are only seeing emergencies and doing boosters though

halloweenie13 · 14/12/2021 00:26

I've been waiting over a year to have my implant removed, a year and a half for a hearing test referral to come through (I have partial hearing and have had multiple surgeries) and recently tried to get into see or speak to a GP over the phone about a chest infection and severe asthma, was told they would ring me that day then they never rang sent a text saying they had tried me when they hadn't when I called back the text straight away was told the clinician left hours ago then was shouted at to call back over the weekend. I stressed the importance of receiving treatment as an asthmatic on adrenal impacting medication and the receptionist just put the phone down on me and ended up in A and E later that night on nebulizers. I give up to be honest.

frenchiemummy92 · 14/12/2021 02:41

Our GP has never gone back to seeing patients face to face. You could go in for bloods/injections but couldn't get a face to face GP appointment unless they deemed it "urgent".

I tried getting an appointment for a lump I found in my breast a few weeks ago and was told by the receptionist the GP would phone me back by the end of the day but if she didn't think it was urgent I wouldn't be seen. Phoned a few hours before the surgery shut and I did get an appointment luckily but to me I think they should book you in immediately.

Slipperoo · 14/12/2021 02:59

Its crazy, using GPs to do jabs rather than their core jobs is such a waste of resource, but as the government has decimated the rest of the NHS so there's no give to get others in, here we are.

CorsicaDreaming · 14/12/2021 04:52

@Bellabelloo

The main problem is it's the non-medically trained receptionists deciding what snd what isn't urgent! I have had a hacking cough for 3 months to the point that I vomit every day and have a constant headache from coughing so much. All of my PCRs are negative, so it's not urgent. But to me it is and I am terrified of getting covid when I'm already so sick.
That really doesn't sound good @Bellabelloo - I would say you do need to get that checked out if it's gone on this long - you've tried to let the illness take its course and if it's still bad this long, you need some advice on it.
middleager · 14/12/2021 06:32

I haven't been able to get an appointment since the pandemic started.

Ours hasn't done face to face since then either.

Of a morning, at 8am, I'm told that around 50 people ring up, get placed in a long queue and vye for a coveted phone slot. I've never been successful. Even phoning later in the day, you are put into a 50 minute phone queue for any enquiry. You can't pre book, you must call for a slot at 8am.

milly74 · 14/12/2021 08:17

A lot of GP practices haven't been seeing patients for nearly 2 years a phone appointment if you are lucky enough the receptionist lets you have one

milly74 · 14/12/2021 08:19

@Bellabelloo

The main problem is it's the non-medically trained receptionists deciding what snd what isn't urgent! I have had a hacking cough for 3 months to the point that I vomit every day and have a constant headache from coughing so much. All of my PCRs are negative, so it's not urgent. But to me it is and I am terrified of getting covid when I'm already so sick.
this, its got to be wrong receptionist dictating who gets seen
StopGo · 14/12/2021 08:23

My GP practice hasn't offered face to face appointments since March 2020. My terminally ill DH was denied appointments. Dr sent me a hand written letter when he died, too little too late.

My DS has a post operative infection still can't get an appointment. The government are only interested in vaccines.

AnnaMagnani · 14/12/2021 08:28

Both problems listed on this thread would be urgent to a GP

Actually having pains - urgent
Cough that is making you vomit - urgent

milly74 · 14/12/2021 08:31

@AnnaMagnani

Both problems listed on this thread would be urgent to a GP

Actually having pains - urgent
Cough that is making you vomit - urgent

but you have to convince the receptionist its urgent first sadly
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