Letter: GP surgeries are falling short

Am I the only one who feels that the current method of booking an appointment to see your GP needs some serious revision?

My own surgery employs a system whereby you call up first thing in the morning (you’re always at least ninth in the queue, no matter how early you ring), and request an appointment, only to be told by a forthright receptionist that you ‘should have called earlier’. Doesn’t seem to matter if you call five seconds after the surgery opens – there are still no appointments.

And it doesn’t stop there. Assuming you do actually get through and speak to a real life human, it’s inevitably the same bolshy receptionist who demands to know every detail of what’s wrong with you. And if you don’t tell them, they say they can’t book you in for a doctor call.

So whether or not you get to speak with a doctor is at the whim of some nosey parker with no medical training whatsoever.

In the last 24 hours I’ve called my GP surgery (Ecclesfield Group Practice), who referred me to the 111 service, who sent me to hospital where I sat in A&E for three hours, only to not see a doctor and be told by a triage nurse that my own GP should be dealing with my issue.

I’m usually the first to champion our NHS, but the GP appointment booking system leaves a great deal to be desired.