Telephone Appointments – making the process easier for both parties

• If you feel your request is urgent, this will be flagged to the Duty Doctor – please give clear details of your concerns to the Patient Advisor.

• We offer some advanced bookings for telephone appointments up to 2 weeks ahead. If your request is of a routine nature, please bear this in mind.

• For routine calls, depending on the pressures of the day, please be aware the GP may not ring you back until the early evening.

• The Patient Advisor will ask for brief details to add to your request. This will allow the GP or clinician to prioritise their calls.

• If you work or have a hospital/clinical appointment elsewhere, the GP will endeavour to contact you at a time when you will be available. Please state this to the Patient Advisor – this can be either morning or afternoon. Unfortunately, 1-hour timeframes are not available.

• The GP will make 2 attempts to contact you. If this fails and you have given us a mobile number, a text message will be sent requesting that you re-book your telephone appointment if still required.

• Answerphone messages may be left, at the discretion of the clinician, if your full name is given in the greeting message.