What’s happening in General Practice?

We have received a few enquiries regarding access to appointments, long waits on telephones, I can’t see my regular GP, my surgery has been closed throughout the pandemic and many more enquiries about the practice.

All these topics have been discussed with the practice and like all practices nationally, Aspen is no different.  The pandemic has obviously caused the practice to operate differently and the branch surgeries have been used as Covid hot hubs.  The hubs have now shifted which has allowed Saintbridge to open and Tuffley to be used as the Covid hot hub.  Moving towards winter it is important that the practice continues to deliver vaccinations and will be offering additional flu and Covid booster clinics.  This is also alongside delivering day to day care.  

What happens when I call for an appointment?  Patients will be navigated through the care navigation process to determine the appropriate triage route.  Care navigators have a mixture of admin and clinicians working behind the scenes dealing with calls, online consultations to provide the patient with the most efficient care pathway.  If your need is assessed as urgent, a GP or clinician will call patients to determine if you need to attend a face to face appointment.

Why am I number 34 in the telephone queue? The demand on practices are far greater than it was before the pandemic.  The practice provides services for over 30,000 registered patients and the demand for primary care services, have shown an increase that impacts the length of time patients would need to wait in the queue.  If your enquiry is not urgent try using eConsult on the practice website or use the pharmacy services.  If your need is urgent call NHS111 or use services at minor injury units. If your concern is life threatening you should call 999.

Why is the receptionist so rude? This is not the case and receptionists are being subjected to abuse on top of the pressure from taking enquiries at the front desk, which are holding queues up and having a knock effect with waiting longer than usual, and in some cases patients missing their appointments.  The practice has switched the patient check-in screens on to try and ease the pressure on the reception.  The PPG will continue to work with the practice and patients to represent the patients views. We are committed to working with the practice to improve services and we are always looking for dynamic patients to join our team.  If you would like to join please get in touch.