We have been listening to the feedback given by our patients and have heard the
frustrations regarding the 08:30am phone queue and our appt booking system.
Practices all over the country are struggling with the same issues and many have
decided to adopt a total triage system, where every appt request must be sent via an
online form. As a practice we are resisting the national pressure to adopt this
approach as we feel it is important for our patients to be able to speak to us to get
the help they need.
However, we are also aware that this causes an issue with both urgent and routine
requests for help all trying to get through at 08:30am in the morning. To try and resolve this issue, and to prioritise those with the most urgent need, with effect from 17th June, you will notice a change to our phone system and the messages you hear when you call us.
Any of our patients in need of urgent care that day will be asked to phone between
08:30am to 10:30am, you will then be booked onto a triage list (triage means that a clinician will call and assess you before deciding how to help). Housebound patients who need a home visit should also request this before 10:30am on the day.
If your request is for a routine appointment , which can be booked 2 weeks ahead,
then you will be asked to call us after 10:30am. Routine appointments will be released for booking after 10:30am each day (for 2 weeks ahead) and you will be sent a booking link, via txt message, to enable you to book your own appt as they become available, this will prevent you from having to keep calling us back each day.
No appointment system is going to be perfect for everyone, however we hope that by
adopting this new approach we can navigate away from some of the recurring issues
our patients have been experiencing, whilst also easing the pressure on our team.
We hope that transferring over to our new system won’t cause too many issues, but
your patience over the next couple of weeks is appreciated.
Port View Surgery