What's your experience when it comes to getting GP appointments? And other questions...

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello

MNHQ have been asked to contribute to panel events at upcoming political party conferences on the topic of the 'access crisis facing general practice' - so, as ever, we've come looking for your views.

Overall, what's your experience of getting GP appointments, whether for yourself or for members of your family? Do you find it easy to book same-day appointments for things that need urgent attention, and/or to book further in advance? Do the mechanics of the booking system drive you up the wall (frantically hitting 'call back' multiple times the moment that appointments are released) or does your local surgery make it fairly pain-free? Have there been times when you've been unable to get an appointment at all?

What do you think politicians should do (if anything) to improve access to GPs, and support GPs in doing their jobs within communities?

Any examples you can give us of things that work well, or ways that things could be improved, would be great.

We should stress this isn't going to be a GP-bashing exercise; the events are being run by the Royal College of General Practitioners, which recently launched a campaign to 'highlight the pressures facing general practice'.

Over to you.

I think Saturday appts at mine are emergencies only.

Our gp surgery are great and reading things like this make me realise how lucky I am! The longest I've waited for an appointment was 3 days and the receptionist was very apologetic about the wait despite me telling her it wasn't urgent.

Not that long ago ( maybe 12 months ) you could get an appointment near enough straight away. Now it can be as long as 3 weeks for a specific GP.

My GP practice is awesome! You call in the morning and can ask to see one of the doctors, one of the nurse practioners, or have a call back. You do the same thing for afternoon appointments.

I have never been told no and they will prioritise emergencies.

They are supportive, professional, and caring.

I would like to add, for the benefit of David Cameron who loves to bash the Welsh NHS, that I am in Wales and have the most excellent service.

I wouldn't want to move out of the catchment area for my GP's practice because they are so good.

Generally the staff are proficient though seems a real postcode lottery. Where there are problems or I have observed them they have been on the back of 'power tripping receptionists' people walking out or reminding receptionists they are not medically trained.

I do believe though if you are getting paid over £100k by the state you should do a bit of weekend working...

At my new GP practice (due to house move) I am finding it very frustrating to access appointments for my daughter who has a recurring issue which the Health visitor recommended I speak to the GP about. I need to get an appointment when the issue is occurring in order for the GP to be able to see the symptoms. However when I try to get an appointment they can only offer me an appointment 2 weeks or more away by which time the issue will have temporarily gone away. So they tell me to make an emergency appointment but I can't phone at the time they specify because I am in the middle of the school run at that time and the issues is not one that requires time off school.

I have been very frustrated as at my previous surgery I was always offered a same day appointment without question whatever time of day I phoned (even if I was happy to wait 'till another day)

Also My DH had an issue where he was very unwell but the first day he phoned by the time he got through the triage list was full and he was told to phone back next day, when he did the triage nurse who phoned him back tried to tell him he just needed to take painkillers but he persisted as he had already been doing this for several days, so he was reluctantly given an appointment to see the GP who immediately referred him to the hospital.

I've also tried to use the online booking system to book routine appointments but they only seem to have a limited number of evening appointments available for online booking and I need to get in during the day so I can be child free.

When you do get to see a GP they are fantastic, but it is just so hard to get an appropriate appointment.

I would like to see another level of appointment for conditions which are not so urgent you need to be seen today, but are sufficiently urgent that you cannot wait 2 weeks to be seen.

Our surgery is, on the whole, great!

Open surgery in the morning - If you turn up between 8.30am and 10.00am you will be seen.

I've never tried to book a same day appointment for myself but I did once need to take DS3 after school. The receptionist said there weren't any available appointments but if I bought DS along a Dr would see him after surgery. I thought that was so good of them to fit him in.

There are also phone appointments which are really helpful when you're not sure your problem warrants taking up an appointment slot.

My only minor niggle is the waiting time when you have an appointment to see the nurse. I've had to see the nurse twice in the last six weeks and both times I wasn't seen until almost an hour after my appointment time. Luckily I'm a SAHM so was able to wait but if I'd been working it's unlikely I could have waited all that time in the middle of the day.

Thanks so much for all your responses - we'll have a read through and respond to any questions, but this is really useful.

As a follow-up: what ONE THING should the government do to improve the situation and make it easier for GPs to provide services to their patients?

~ I'm lucky that I don't need to visit my local surgery often but my elderly Aunt lives on the Kent Coast and has had so many problems with her local surgery. They have reduced the number of Drs working there so it's now difficult to get an appoinment. She can't change surgery as there aren't any within an easy distance. The "one thing" that would help in that surgery is to increase the number of Drs there.

My GPs office are really good now. They used to be awful, waiting a few weeks for appointments, always running 15+ minutes late and practically chucking you out after 2 minutes.

Now, you can't make an appointment, you phone reception and are on hold until someone becomes available. Then they'll get a brief description of the issue (but you don't have to tell them if you don't want to). Then a GP will call you back the same day, usually within a couple hours, and will determine if you need to come in. Less waiting time, less missed appointments. It's really smooth and stress free.

My surgery will no longer allow you to make appointments. First a GO has to call you back, then the GP will decide whether you need to make the appointment, and they arrange it themselves.

At first we thought it a dreadful waste of an expensively-trained professional's time. In fact, it has worked out extremely well. Today, for example, I think ds may have a UTI: I phoned at 3pm, GP called back 45mins later, I collected the sample pot at 5pm, will deposit ds's sample first thing tomorrow, and it will be in the lab by lunchtime Saturday. Previous system, calling on a Fruday afternoon would probably have meant ds would not be seen until Monday, and would probably have had to be taken out of school for the appointment.

Several tes with this new telephone consultation system, the GP has decided that we should be seen that same day, and we were - no hanging around.

I don't feel fobbed-off by the phone calls. And if I want to talk in person, I can say so, and they make me an appointment.

The one weakness that I can see in the system is what if you cannot answer the phone at work? A teacher or factory-line worker, for example.

Typo: GO=GP.

To improve access to GPs:

More GPs, so fewer patients per GP.

Evening and weekend surgeries, rather than OOH clinics with drs who do not know you and are in awkward locations.

Another ring on the day and await a call back that usually ends with "you need to be seen ASAP" shame really when that call back happens at 5.40pm and your over an hours drive from the docs so you end up in out of hours at 11pm after attempting to get an emergency appointment from 8:30am

Our surgery is excellent (North Essex). They run commuter clinics with early morning and late evening appointments and I even got the holy grail of a home visit when I was poorly (very) last month.

My only issue is that I do not want to tell receptionists my ongoing health problems either over the phone or in person if they ask. I don't know what makes surgeries think this is ok where someone has a medical history and these things are in the notes.

I can understand why this is necessary for emergency appointments but not where the receptionist is just trying to gauge whether you are a 2 or 3 week wait.

DH has had trouble with our surgery, they seemed to think he could wait 5 days despite horrible side effects from antibiotics.

However, every time I have phoned for DD (now 16m) they have without fail found me an appt for that day. And if I say I really can't do that time, they find something the next day. This is despite the vast majority of my calls being for her sticky eye and me constantly saying it really isn't urgent. I love them.

My surgery are in all honesty rubbish at getting appointments. They are over subscribed (by their own admission) getting an appointment is a nightmare. The line is always engaged and nearly always same day appointments are fully booked and my surgery do not offer pre bookable appointments with a gp so you are asked to ring back the following day. The staff are rude and intrusive with their questioning of why you need to see a doctor. The GPS at the surgery are clearly overworked and lack a bedside manner.

Appointments aee rushed and limited to 10mins if your over this time you are asked to leave and make another appointment to continue your appointment at a later date.

The surgery now offer telephone appointment s however the GPS are unable to prescribe medication on these so if you requite medication you have to ring back the following day to try and obtain an appointment in person. They no longer offer home visit under any circumstances.

Surgery hours are limited. 8-10 am is gp. 10 to 12 are for new baby a post natal appointments. 12-3 closed.. 3-6 pm gp.

The waiting area is for 3seperate surgeries so seating is limitedand many patients are standing. There is a no buggy rule for babies. No buggies in the waiting area and none in the doctors offices. Obviously this is difficult if you have a baby espically as there is no where to sit and you have to stand and cradle your child.

There is no child's area so long waits with no books, magazines or toys with a poorly child are demanding.

Generally I don't visit my local surgery unless nessecary. I always call but usually unsucesful in getting an appointment so have to call NHS direct and get an out of hours appointment with the go at the local hospital.

I don't mean to bash GPS as I feel they do a great job. But the current surgeries in my area fail to meet demand and are clearly under resourced and under financed and this is seen in the service that is offered

I've worked briefly in a couple of surgeries with early and evening 'commuter' appointments. No one can check you're a 'commuter' so the same people got the morning and late evening slots as would get any others.

Generally, as a family we just don't bother, I haven't been to the GP for years, the dcs have been once each (they are 7 and 9). It is such a chew getting sn appointment, and I hate being triaged by the receptionist over the phone to see if I am ill enough to bd granted access. I also ferl guilty that other people need the slot more than me. I guess they really did a job on me...
I work jn the NHS and understand the presssures, that is probably ehy I choose self care over visiting GPs.

Yeah, I know a lot of the same people try to get most of the commuter appointments but at least the service is offered, unlike at all of my former GPs where even if I have the earliest appointment they offered, with my commute I wouldn't have been in the office til nearly 11. Not on. It gives us a fighting chance of getting in at a reasonable time or leaving work at normal time and seeing a Dr. Hallelujah!

It's a really good point about being triaged by the receptionist. If they had medical training I'd be ok with it, but they don't. And they're not bound by any kind of confidentiality, there is no way I'm telling them about my health issues.

Our surgery has a twin track approach - same day appointments (for those who pass the triage stage) or book ahead. But the reception staff insist that everyone - including those wanting to book ahead - ring at 8am so the only people who actually get appointments (I imagine) are those with nothing else to do at 8am but hit the redial button.

The surgery for a while had sessions where you could turn up and wait to be seen. Obviously the waiting for up to an hour and a half wasn't great but it did at least mean you could see a doctor when you were still actually ill rather than a fortnight after the event. These sessions were abandoned - with no consultation as far as I could see - on the grounds that they weren't popular with patients. Depends who you ask, I should have thought?

At ours, you ring at 8am. If you can get through, a receptionist will take your details and a Dr will call you back if they think it is necessary. Once they've spoken to you, it is possible you'll get an appt to come in - at their convenience, in a few hours. That's fine if you're not working that day, but awful if you don't have an office job and have to arrange cover of some sort. I also used to start work at 8am - no way was I ever getting to the GP as you aren't allowed to book appointments any other way.

at mine you can phone at 8am to get on the list for a call back to see if they will give you an appt hat day.

My gripe is that you then have to wait around for a call back - which impacts on your day -sometimes they call back at say 10am and ask you to be there in the next 5 mins or other occasion they'll say 4pm. it makes the day impossible - can't judge whether to leave on school runs etc ...wastes so much time.

Awful, they run the triage system, last time I called for an emergency appointment, they wanted to call me back.

Baby went down hill fast and I called surgery back. I insisted they allowed me to come straight down. I saw the doctor. Three hours later triage called me back. had I not been a pushy madam, I would have had a very sick child

Where I live (south east) there is a walk in clinic 8-8 7 days a week which anyone can use but my gp surgery also has a few emergency appointments available each day. The one time I needed an emergency appointment for my ds I called at lunchtime and explained that he definitely needed to see a doctor that day but I could take him to the walk in clinic if all their appointments were gone. They insisted I bring him straight down as little ones shouldn't be hanging around in waiting rooms when they were poorly and the doctor saw him quickly. The receptionist does ask what the problem is if you ask for an emergency appointment but they are happy to put it down as a personal issue if you don't want to explain. 1 hour after calling the gp my ds was tucked up in bed with his medicine Fab service, I love my gp surgery.

I would like to be able to register with a GP near work and near home. If you have an appointment at 11. 00 and then and hour and a half commute it is ridiculous. I would be happy to have medical notes on a central database so they could be accessed by more than one practice.