One of the biggest challenges facing the Forest Surgery over the years, like so many surgeries has been the appointment system. Many methods have been tried.
The procedure to follow is summarised below:
- Our aim is to guarantee a same-day appointment with a clinician for every patient who requests it
- Appointments can also be booked for up to seven days in advance (longer for nurses and healthcare assistants), subject to availability
- Choice of clinician is taken in to consideration but not guaranteed
Appointments can not be booked at the reception desk, and must be requested by phone during booking times (see contact us for details)
- Patients are requested to state the nature of the problem so that it can be triaged appropriately. Rest assured the practice has a confidentiality policy and unnecessary details are not requested
- At this stage either an appointment is offered or an alternative course of action is suggested, stating the rationale for this.
Other points to remember:
- The Surgery hours are between 08:00 - 13:00 and 15:30 – 18:00 (nurse hours may differ). On Thursday the surgery is closed in the afternoon
- For the benefit of all patients, the clinician can normally deal with only one issue per consultation
- Patients unable to keep their appointment should inform the practice as soon as possible
- Patients expecting to be more than 15 minutes late should call to check that their appointment has not been cancelled
- Patients requiring an interpreter should inform reception when booking their appointment.
- If you believe you have a problem that can be dealt with by phone you can request a call-back appointment.
The practice number is an 0844 low-call rate number and should be cheap when calling from landlines. However charges may differ on other networks and callers should make enquiries with their network provider.
- Finally, the system is not perfect and will continue to evolve. We appreciate the support and patience of those affected and will communicate changes at the reception desk, by telephone message and/or on the website notice board.
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