How Do I ... Make An Appointment?

Routine appointments can be booked up to four weeks ahead. For continuity of care we recommend that you see your usual doctor, although you are of course welcome to see any doctor in the practice. Acute cases and emergencies will always be seen the same day, normally with your usual doctor unless they are unavailable.

Our nurse practitioner also offers appointments. She is qualified to treat a range of illnesses and injuries. She is also authorised to prescribe medication if necessary.

Appointments with our practice nurses are available during the day. They are trained to deal with minor illnesses and injuries but will enlist the help of a doctor if there are any complications.
The surgery offers a number of pre-bookable appointments outside of normal surgery hours. These appointments are for patients who commute and are unable to visit the surgery during normal hours.

PLEASE INFORM THE SURGERY IF YOU CANNOT KEEP AN APPOINTMENT!
On average nearly 30 appointments each week are lost through patients not attending and not contacting the surgery to cancel. That equates to one whole day wasted every single week!

Students

Medical and nursing students may be sitting in with your doctor from time to time. If you do not wish a student to be present during your consultation, just tell the doctor.

Temporary Residents

You are entitled to see a doctor anywhere in the UK if you are away from home and in need of medical help. You can do this by asking to see the nearest doctor as a temporary resident.

We are happy to see any relatives or friends staying with you (provided they are normally resident in the UK) if they need to consult a doctor.

How Do I ... Obtain Telephone Advice?

Often medical problems can be dealt with by speaking to your doctor on the telephone. The receptionist will take a contact number from you and the doctor will telephone you after morning surgery. Messages can be left in confidence with the receptionist for you to phone at a later time for a reply from the doctor. The staff at Clanricarde appreciate the difficulties patients sometimes experience in getting through on the telephone. We are constantly looking at ways of improving access, but acknowledge that with over 10,000 patients on our list we will not always be able to satisfy everybody.

You may wish to seek advice from the practice nurse. In that event a message can be left at reception for you to call back later for an answer or to speak to the nurse directly.

Please note that all telephone calls to/from the surgery may be monitored and recorded for quality and training purposes.

How Do I... Obtain A Home Visit?

Patients are requested to phone before 10.00am if a visit is required that day.

Please give the receptionist as much information as possible to enable the doctor to allocate priority to home visits. Sometimes, the doctor may ask a district nurse to make an assessment in the first place.

Please remember that several patients can be seen in the time it takes to do a home visit.

How Do I... Obtain Test Results?

Most urine and blood tests are taken in the morning and the results are usually available three working days later, though some may take longer. Please telephone after 3.00pm for results.

For reasons of confidentiality results can only be given to the patient or their guardian. Receptionists are only able to pass on any comment given by your doctor; they are not medically qualified to discuss your result. Any questions should be directed to the doctors or nurses.

How Do I.... Change My Details?

If you change your name or address, please remember to inform the surgery and include your new telephone number and postcode. Please also inform us if your title changes eg from Miss to Mrs.