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Made to feel like they are doing you a favour

Story from nhs.uk

"Made to feel like they are doing you a favour"

About: Radnor House Surgery and Ascot Med Ctr

Yet again I rang today and nobody answered. Impossible to get through at any time of day and it’s not even as if you’re allowed to book doctors appointments on the phone that has to be done with an online form. For well over 6 months message has said short of staff due sickness so will take longer to answer phone. Any other business would fill that shortfall but patients are expected to hang on, often in excess of half an hour, to be answered. Often you have to give up as you don’t have time to wait. When you do get through you are met with surly bad tempered receptionists who are either deeply unhappy in their jobs or who feel it is their role to be as awful and as unwelcoming as possible in an effort to stop you calling again.

If you are lucky enough to get an appointment, having filled out a form, you are given a random day when someone, you have no idea who or even what their role is, will ring you. It might say it’s a morning appointment but in reality that rarely means anything so you have to be ready to answer your phone anywhere between 8-6. You never speak to the same person twice, even with an ongoing condition, so you have to start all over again every time and they all seem to have different views on treatment so you chop and change medication/doses all the time. Whilst the doctors, pharmacists, clinicians, assistants whoever it is who may call you (the all powerful receptionists seem to decide) are all very nice but the care is so fragmented it is a nightmare.

It feels very much like a system that is working for the practice not the patients.

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Responses

Response from Radnor House Surgery and Ascot Med Ctr 2 weeks ago
Radnor House Surgery and Ascot Med Ctr

Submitted on 14/05/2024 at 15:31
Published on nhs.uk at 15:31

Dear Patient

Thank you for your feedback and I am sorry to hear that you have not had a good experience. It is always helpful to receive feedback so that we can look into where we can improve.

Unfortunately, as you have not provided me with your personal details I am unable to contact you directly to look into all of the points you have raised but would be very happy to do so. Please contact me via email address amc.amc@nhs.net and mark for my attention, I will be in touch.

I have since requested the comfort message relating to staff absence due to sickness is removed. Thank you for identifying this oversight on my part.

I monitor incoming calls myself and audit on a monthly basis and I am surprised you have said that you are unable to get through or have waited that long. We have a mechanism to identify any patients who have been waiting longer than 5 minutes and with the help of our Patient Navigation Screening whereby patients who are frail or have multi-morbidities are coded, we call those patients back.

This Practices still offers on the day telephone calls at 8am for any urgent issues. We have done this in consideration of our wider population who may not have access to technology. However, we also (in addition) provide a call back service to any patients who are unable to complete an online E-consultation themselves, and our Reception Team call them back that morning/afternoon. This has been received very well and is supported by our Patient Participation Group.

All of our E-consultations are triaged by a GP and not by a member of our Reception Team and it is a clinical decision as to which clinician is the most appropriate to see a patient locally (whether a GP, Pharmacist, Minor Illness Nurse, Paramedic or a Nurse), in a specified time. This is how the appointments are pre-booked for our patients as a result of an Online E-consultation. Where able, if a particular clinician has been dealing with that patient, we will always aim to book with that same clinician but this is not always possible given that not everyone works every day and following clinical assessment, their condition may need to be sooner.

Texts/emails are sent to patients advising of their appointment with which clinician, date and time. If this has not been your experience, perhaps we do not have your up to date? It would be helpful if you could confirm to us in writing your current mobile number, email address and address. We also have monthly sessions to help patients with technology and if this is something you may find helpful, please let us know and we will add you to the next workshop covering E-consultations / Patient Access and NHS APP; you would be most welcome.

Of course ultimately, we understand whilst we do the best we can to help our patients understand the way in our appointment system works, inevitably it might not work for everyone. I am sorry if this is the case for you.

I look forward to hearing from you.

KR Jo Taylor, Practice Manager

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