Appointments lines

01668 213738 (Belford) or 01665 720917 (Seahouses)

Appointments

We operate a triage appointment system at both surgery's. Patients will need to book a telephone triage with a GP initially and if the GP feels they need to bring patients in for a face to face appointment they will inform the patient when on the phone or ask a member of our reception team to contact the patient to offer the appointment. Please contact the surgery by phone after 8.30 am or in person. If you are unable to keep an appointment, PLEASE INFORM THE SURGERY AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, so that it can be offered to someone else.

Home visits

If you are unable to get to a surgery, and wish the Doctor to visit that day, please contact the surgery, if possible before 10.00 am. Please give the staff member details about the nature of your problems, so doctors can prioritise the calls.

In general, we ask that patients only request a home visit if they are genuinely housebound and too unwell to come to the surgery. The computerised records and some pieces of medical equipment which are so helpful in modern general practice are only available at the surgery. In addition, your doctor can usually see several patients at the surgery in the time that it takes to make a single home visit.

If you have had a stay in hospital and you are unable to come to the surgery you can expect a visit from a member of the Primary Health Care Team for the following reasons:-

• Ongoing dressings and suture removal
• Home care package assessment
• Heart disorders
• Post-natal
• Those who have had a major illness or an operation

GP choice

All patients are registered with the Practice and not with individual doctors. This means that patients are able to request an appointment with the GP of their choice. However, for continuity of care, we recommend that patients see the same GP for ongoing Health Issues.

Interpreting services

Interpreting services can be arranged if necessary. Please request this when making an appointment.

Please help us free up appointments

Appointment demand is rising in all GP surgeries. There will be occasions where we may no longer be able to offer same day appointments for routine/non-urgent problems, you may therefore have to wait a day or two to see a GP, or maybe longer for the GP of your choice, if your problem is not urgent.

As always, urgent problems will still be seen on the day by the doctor on duty.

To help free up appointments for people who need to be seen, we ask that patients consider the following:

• Do you really need to see a doctor face to face?
  Completion of forms, general and medication advice only can be done without taking up an appointment slot.
• Would talking to the doctor on the telephone solve your query?
  If you are not sure if you need to make an appointment, call reception and they will arrange a time for a coctor to call you back.

Think Pharmacy First

The local pharmacist can offer free advice for a range of problems and free treatment for those who are eligible for free prescriptions.

If the pharmacist then thinks you need to be seen by a doctor, he/she will ask you to make an appointment with the doctor.

Is your problem dental?

Make an appointment to see a dentist not a doctor and help us to free up appointments for patients who need to be seen urgently.