Notification of Practice Closure

The practice will be closed on Wednesday 5th June between 12pm and 6pm for STAFF TRAINING.

We will only be able to answer URGENT queries during this time period.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Notification of Practice Closure

We will be closed on Wednesday 5th June from 12pm-6pm for STAFF TRAINING. We will only be answering URGENT queries during this time.

Notification of Practice Closure

We will be closed on Wednesday 5th June from 12pm-6pm for STAFF TRAINING.

We will be providing URGENT medical assistance only during this time.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Notification of Practice Closure

We will be closed on Wednesday 5th June from 12pm-6pm for STAFF TRAINING.

We will only be dealing with URGENT medical matters during this time.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Appointments

Can another health professional help?

Sometimes a GP may not be the most appropriate healthcare professional to deal with your ailment. Other professionals such as pharmacists, opticians and dentists may be better placed to help.

Appointments

To request an appointment :

Please contact us from 8am for EMERGENCY appointments and AFTER 10am for routine appointments.

When you get in touch, we’ll ask what you need help with.

We will use the information you give us to choose the most suitable doctor, nurse or health professional to help you.

Our consultation guide provides helpful information.

Appointment Options

There are a number of different appointments on offer with the doctors. Appointments are for one patient only.

Duty Doctor

Duty doctor appointments are available daily and are intended for new or worsening problems causing someone symptoms that were unpredicted and need treatment soon. Please call the practice from 8am if this service is required.

There is always a doctor on duty during practice opening hours to deal with emergencies. Most of the time, you will receive an initial call from the duty doctor/advanced nurse practitioner to explore the problem in more detail. You cannot usually choose the time of an urgent appointment or the doctor you see.

Urgent

These appointments are for new or ongoing problems that should be seen and dealt with in the next few days but are not considered an emergency and need to be seen on the same day.

The on-call duty doctor or reception team may review your request for an appointment and then offer an appointment within the next 72 hours if they feel this is appropriate.

Routine

Routine appointments can be booked up to 2 weeks in advance with any doctor. This is to improve access to GPs for non-urgent problems. Appointments become available from 10am for the following day in 2 weeks time and so we ask please to call and book these appointments AFTER 10am.

Routine appointments are often the best appointments for follow up of ongoing problems or new problems that can wait for a few weeks to be assessed. It is often desirable to keep seeing the same doctor if it is a follow up appointment so bare this in mind when booking.

Telephone

You can request a telephone consultation with a doctor if you feel it is something that can be easily discussed over the phone (i.e. you don’t need to ‘show’ the doctor what is wrong). Your doctor may have suggested it for follow up.

The receptionist will usually ask for some more information in regards to the telephone appointment. This is because last year we analysed the GP telephone consultations and found often another team member eg Practice Nurse, Pharmacist would have been more appropriate to speak to and we hope by asking a few questions this may help your query be answered quicker.

We will always deal with any medical problems you have to the best of our ability, however, if you have more than one issue to discuss it may not be possible to deal with this in one single appointment.

Nurse Appointments

The nurses provide a range of clinics for chronic diseases and for more general problems. They have urgent, routine and telephone appointments as well as those set aside for speciality clinics. Our health care assistant has dedicated clinics including early morning sessions most days. We will often re-direct you to have blood tests taken in the community; this is so you can access this service quickly and efficiently.

Cancelling or changing an appointment

If you are unable to keep your appointment to see the Doctor or the Practice Nurse, please let us know as soon as possible as this can be used as an appointment for someone else.

How to cancel your appointment:

  • phone us during opening hours
  • patients who attend more than 9 minutes after the appointment time will not be seen and this will be documented on their records as a did not attend (DNA)
  • If you are late you may need to re-book.

Your appointment

However you choose to contact us, we may offer you a consultation:

  • by phone
  • face to face at the surgery

Appointments by phone can be more flexible and often means you get help sooner.

If you need help with your appointment

Please tell us:

  • if there’s a specific doctor, nurse or other health professional you would prefer to respond
  • if you would prefer to consult with the doctor or nurse by phone, or by face-to-face
  • if you need an interpreter
  • if you have any other access or communication needs

If you need help when we are closed

The 111 service provides urgent care information and support if you think you need A&E but its not life-threatening, and advice when your GP, pharmacy or dental practice is closed.

Call 999 in a medical or mental health emergency. This is when someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk.

When to call 999

You should only call 999 in a medical emergency, when someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk.

  • Emergencies can include:
  • Loss of consciousness
  • Cardiac arrest
  • Heart attack
  • Stroke
  • An acute confused state
  • Chest pains
  • Breathing difficulties
  • Severe bleeding that cannot be stopped
  • Severe allergic reactions
  • Severe burns or scalds
  • Major trauma, such as a road traffic accident or fall from a height.

If you are unsure if it is an emergency, call NHS 24 on 111.

What happens when you call 999

An operator will ask which emergency service you need. If it’s a medical emergency, ask for the ambulance service. The ambulance service will ask some questions to find out what has happened and arrange the most appropriate help.

Further information is available on the Scottish Ambulance Service website.

By only calling 999 for serious illnesses or injuries, it means that people who need essential treatment can get it as soon as possible.

Home visits

  • If you need a GP home visit, you can help us by calling reception between 8:00am to 10:00am. If you are calling on the patient’s behalf, please leave a contact phone number along with your name and relationship to the patient as the doctor may need more details from you
  • Please keep your address and phone numbers up to date at all times and Complete a Change of contact details form
  • Your District Nursing team attend to housebound patients with nursing needs or who need annual chronic disease reviews. They can be contacted directly on 01738 473334
  • There is a community phlebotomy service if you are housebound and need a blood test. Please discuss this with reception.

Routine vaccinations

Vaccinations help protect you and your family from many infectious diseases. You’ll be offered different routine vaccinations at different times, depending on your age and circumstances. For most routine vaccinations, your local health board will invite you by sending you a letter when you become eligible. You do not need to contact them to arrange your vaccinations.

You may be invited to a new location to receive your immunisations instead of your GP practice.

Additional information about your appointment with us
Can I bring someone to accompany me to the Appointment?

We are generally very happy for patients to bring with them a carer, relative or even a friend. This often helps, particularly when they know you well and it allows them to tell us any observations they would make about you, which can help us in undertaking our assessment. Ultimately this will lead us more quickly to make an accurate diagnosis and therefore help you more.

Also, having someone with you means they can prompt you to ask questions that you may have forgotten, and after the appointment they can help in reminding you what was discussed.

Occasionally we might ask for them to leave but this would be unusual.

If you require interpretation services please contact us in advance of you appointment and we will arrange this.

Chaperone Policy

We will always respect your privacy, dignity and your religious and cultural beliefs particularly when intimate examinations are advisable – these will only be carried out with your express agreement and you will be offered a chaperone to attend the examination if you so wish.

You may also request a chaperone when making the appointment or on arrival at the surgery (please let the receptionist know) or at any time during the consultation.

Giving Consent for Treatment

You have the right to accept or refuse treatment that is offered to you, and not to be given any physical examination or treatment unless you have given valid consent. If you do not have the capacity to do so, consent must be obtained from a person legally able to act on your behalf, or the treatment must be in your best interests.

Your valid consent (agreement to the course of action) is needed for the treatment that’s offered to you before any physical examinations or treatment can be given. If you haven’t given your consent, you can accept or refuse treatment that’s offered to you.

It’s important to be involved in decisions about your treatment and to be given information to help you choose the right treatment. When making treatment choices, you’ll often discuss the options with your doctor or another healthcare professional.

If you have a suspected infectious disease

Please inform reception if you suspect an infectious disease, as this will enable us to deal with it appropriately during your visit to protect you, other patients and staff. 

Interpreter

If you require an interpreter to attend with you when you see your Doctor please notify the receptionist and this will be arranged. These appointments often require longer to complete, so please do let us know if this is required in advance.

Intimate Examinations

During your care, a doctor may need to examine you in order to provide you with the best care. Occasionally this may involve an examination of intimate areas. We understand that this can be stressful and embarrassing. If this sort of examination is necessary:

  • We will explain to you why the examination is necessary and give you the opportunity to ask questions.
  • We will explain what the examination will involve, including whether you can expect it to be painful or uncomfortable.
  • We will obtain your permission before carrying out this examination You will be offered a chaperone.
  • At all times we will respect your privacy during the examination and while dressing and undressing.

Your doctor and the nursing staff will be happy to discuss any concerns you have about this.

Private Medical Examinations

Medical examinations for special purposes such as pre-employment, fitness to travel, elderly drivers, fitness to undertake sports etc, will require longer than a routine appointment.

These examinations do not form part of NHS Services, you will be charged for any such examination. Please check the fee chargeable when you require to arrange any such examination.