Appointments

Appointments

Appointments can be booked up to 3 weeks in advance for any of the doctors. These will be both telephone and face-to-face. Nurse appointments can be booked as far as we have the clinics up. Book appointments by telephoning reception on 01642 270033. The lines open at 08:00.

The doctors surgeries generally run from 09:00 – 12.00 and 14:30 – 17:30 Monday to Friday. You need to make a separate appointment for each member of the family that wishes to seek advice from the doctor.

If you have booked a telephone call, please ensure you have your phone nearby on the day of your appointment. The clinician may call at any time either in the morning or in the afternoon. If you miss a call from the clinician, they will try one further time. If they are unable to contact you at that point, you will have to rebook your appointment.

Home Visits

Requests for home visits should only be made if the patient is unfit to travel to the surgery. All requests for home visits should be made as soon as possible after the surgery opens at 8.00am and as far as possible before 10.30. Only emergencies will be accepted after this time.

You may find that the receptionist asks you details about your condition to enable the doctor to assess your requirements more effectively. Likewise, the doctor may phone you back as it may be that your problem can be dealt with by telephone advice, by sending a nurse or indeed arranging a hospital admission.

Home visits are very demanding in terms of the doctor’s time. Several patients can be seen in the surgery in the time taken to see 1 patient at home. There are also better facilities for examining and treating patients at the surgery.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor’s certificate for any time off work for illness lasting 7 days or less. Your employer may ask you to complete a self-certification form which they should provide. After 7 days your employer can ask for evidence of your illness. Currently this is a ‘statement of fitness for work’ (fit note). You will need to be seen by a doctor for this. In some circumstances, a telephone consultation will do. If you need a renewal, you can submit an E-Consult as well.