Improving Patient Access to Appointments

WE ARE IMPROVING ACCESS / CHANGING THE WAY APPOINTMENTS ARE BOOKED

From 16th September 2025, we are changing how we book our appointments, please find below how the system will work.

We want to provide a system where there is a safe and fair way for patients to access our services. This system should ensure patients receive an appointment based on their clinical need, at the right time, whilst maintaining continuity of care with the most appropriate clinician, irrespective of how you choose to contact the practice.

At the heart of the new system is our online consultation tool, Klinik. We also make use of AccuRx for sending encrypted text messages to patients.

Klinik is one of the many Online Consultation systems approved by the NHS for use by GP Practices, so patients can be assured that it has gone through a rigorous testing and assessment process, is clinically safe to use and meets all national requirements including GDPR and Data Protection.

Klinik is a tool for recording information about your enquiry and identifying the most appropriate care for you.

We have been using Klinik for non-urgent medical and administrative enquiries for some time and we will now be using the Klinik for all patient requests. This will help us to manage demand and ensure that we provide appointments more effectively.

Therefore, all patient requests will now be entered onto the Klinik system, or for those who are unable to use the online system, our staff will enter details into Klinik via telephone or in person.

The system asks questions about your enquiry, this information is vitally important, as it is used by our Team to assess the urgency of your request. Without accurate information, we cannot assess your need. If necessary, we will contact you for more information.

The Team is there to ensure you are offered an appointment in an appropriate timescale and with the most appropriate clinician available. The Reception Team will then contact you to book the appointment or if appropriate you will be sent a self-booking link via AccuRx.

Primary Care is changing and in addition to GP’s and Nurses there are many more highly skilled individuals who work in our Practice. The Team may recommend that you see another Healthcare Professional as the most appropriate Clinician for your care, for example, Pharmacists, Physiotherapists, Advanced Clinical Practitioners, Paramedics and Social Prescribers. We may also direct you to outside services such as Pharmacy First.

Rest assured that where the Team agree that it is clinically appropriate for you to see your chosen GP, this will be arranged.

We would very much like to be able to offer every patient exactly what they have asked for, but the reality is that we do not have the staff or resources to be able to do this. As a result, we must assess your needs according to clinical risk and find the best possible option under the circumstances.