All members of the Surgery Primary Care Team are dedicated to achieving Health Services which meet your requirements.

Practice Leaflet:
All new patients will receive a copy of our practice leaflet.  Copies will be available at the reception desk.

Surgery Premises:
Our surgery will be a welcoming and friendly place where it is easy for all patients to find their way around.  It will provide trouble free access for all.

Your rights to Primary Medical Care:

As a patient you have the right to:

• be registered with the Practice.
• see the doctor of your choice subject to availability.
• be offered a introductory health encounter on joining the practice.
• receive emergency care.
• receive appropriate drugs and medicines.
• be referred for specialist or second opinion if they and the GP agrees.
• see your medical records or have a copy, subject to the law. (please note this will incur a fee)
• know that by law, everyone working for the NHS must keep the content of your medical records private.

Comments, Suggestions & Complaints:

• The Practice Manager handles all comments or complaints about our services, in accordance with our Complaint Procedure – available on request from Reception.
• We include you comments where we can.
• We record all complaints.  We acknowledge receipt of a written complaint within 2 days of receiving it.   We respond to all complaints within 20 working days.
• Where a complaint is about a doctor, you have the right to choose to discuss this with another doctor in the practice if you wish.
• Use of the practice complaints procedure does not take away your right to make a complaint to other NHS bodies.  However we find that the sooner we are made aware of your problem, the sooner we can solve it and make sure that it does not happen again.  This is your practice and we want to work with you to make it the best.

Changes to Services or the way we work:
When changes are introduced to our methods of working or services that affect patients, we will explain these changes clearly in our practice leaflet ; on posters on the waiting room notice board or in separate leaflets.

Repeat Prescriptions:
The system for obtaining repeat prescriptions is explained in our Practice Leaflet.  

Referrals to other doctors or healthcare professionals:

• Urgent referrals to other health and social care agencies will be made if considered necessary.
• We will normally process non-urgent referrals as soon as practicable.
• You may have a copy of our letters, ask your doctor at the time when you discuss with him/her the need to see someone else.

Test Results:
When a test is taken, ask the doctor or nurse how to get the result.  You can usually get some of your test results within 3 working days.

Transfer of Medical Records:
We will try to send any medical record required by the Health Board within 7 working days and on the same day if the request is urgent.

Privacy and Confidentiality:
We will respect our patients' privacy and confidentiality at all times.

Appointments:

With a Doctor - For routine consultations we will try to offer you an appointment within 2 working days of the request.  For medically urgent requests, we will offer an appointment on the same day.  If you wish to see a doctor of your choice you may have to wait longer, the receptionist will make every effort to help you.

With a Practice Nurse - For routine appointments we will try to offer an appointment within five working days.

Home Visits:
Our policy for home visits is explained in the practice leaflet.

Out of Hours Emergencies:
We will do all we can to make sure that our system for contacting the duty doctor service is easy to follow, reliable and effective.

Waiting Times:

• Surgeries will normally start on time.
• We usually expect patients to be seen within thirty minutes of their appointment time.  Please ask at reception if you are kept waiting longer than this.
• When a doctor is called away on an emergency, we will inform you.  We will then give you the chance to book another appointment, or if you wish, to be seen by another doctor.

PATIENT RESPONSIBILITIES

With these rights come responsibilities and for the patients this means we would ask you to please:

• Be courteous to all the staff at all times.  Please remember they are trying to help you.  There is no place for aggressive or rude attitudes at our surgery; it upsets the other patients too.  We want our practice to be a friendly place for all.
• Be on time for your appointments.
• Cancel your appointments in plenty of time.  Someone else could use your appointment.
• Make separate appointments for each member of the family who needs to be seen.  An appointment is for one person only.
• Try to make best use of nursing and medical time by making an effort to come to the surgery.  Home visits should be for medical reasons and not requested to suit your social needs.
• Give 48 hours notice for repeat prescriptions.  This time allows us to make sure your medicines are correct.
• Only ask for a doctor at night (after 6 pm) or at weekends if it is urgent.
• Read the practice leaflets and other information we give you.  They are there to help you use our services.  Please ask us if you do not understand them, this will help us make them easy to read.
• Please let us have your views.  Your ideas are important in helping us make our practice a friendly and safe place to visit for medical treatment.