Appointments Advice
Appointments may be booked four weeks in advance to see a doctor or nurse by telephoning 01749 601333 or calling at the Surgery between 8:30am and 6:30pm Monday to Friday. Although we answer several lines on our main telephone system they are very busy first thing in the morning. If you can leave non-urgent calls until later in the morning we will be able to deal with them more quickly.
Monday is our busiest day. If your requirement is routine and non-urgent try telephoning on another day. It will allow us to respond to your needs more quickly.
Please have a look at the campaign video below that highlights how to get access to to the most appropriate healthcare professional in the practice and explains why you don't always need to see a GP.
01749 601333 - APPOINTMENTS AND ENQUIRIES
You are free to see any doctor of your choice and every effort will be made to give you an appointment with that doctor. It is sensible to see the same doctor each time, particularly for follow-up of an on-going problem.
We will see sick children and urgent cases the same day; otherwise you will be offered the first available appointment. In the mornings we run a GP triage system which means if you have requested an urgent appointment the duty doctor will speak to you and may well be able to sort out your problem over the telephone saving you a trip to the Surgery. If the Doctor feels they need to see you - you will be offered an appointment that morning.
Some problems can be dealt with more easily over the telephone. If you want to speak to the doctor for medical advice, please phone reception. They will arrange for a doctor to phone you back. Doctors are normally available to make calls after morning surgery and before evening surgery.
Please remember that many minor ailments such as coughs, colds, stomach upsets and insect bites usually resolve themselves without you needing to see a doctor.
Home visits are very time consuming and have to be reserved for the housebound and those too ill to come to the surgery. It is often quicker and more satisfactory to wrap a feverish child in a blanket and bring them to the surgery where they can be seen immediately rather than waiting anxiously at home. We can see 4 or 5 patients in the surgery in the time it takes to do a single home visit.
If you do need a home visit please try to phone the surgery before 10.30am. We appreciate that this may not always be possible, but phoning early helps the doctors plan their rounds.
Urgent appointments
Urgent appointments can be made for the same day but may not be with the doctor of your choice and may mean you waiting until a doctor is available.
If you feel the matter cannot wait until the next available routine appointment with your own doctor, please give the receptionist brief details of the problem and they will tell you when to come to the surgery.
Home visits
Home visits are for patients who are too ill or infirm to come to the Surgery. If you need the doctor to visit you at home please telephone the Surgery on 01749 601333 before 10:30am if possible and give the receptionist as much information as you can to help the doctor assess the urgency of the visit.
Out of hours
After 6:30pm and before 8:00am, Monday to Friday, weekends and public holidays:
Emergency out of hours and night cover is provided by Dorset and Somerset Unscheduled Care Service.
If you need to be seen by a doctor you may be asked to go to the Primary Care Centre at Shepton Mallet Community Hospital.
If you are too unwell to attend, you may be visited at home
If you need urgent medical assistance please phone: 111
Infrequent attendees
Patients aged 16 to 74 who have not attended the surgery in the previous three years may request an appointment for a health check-up.
Patients over 75 may request such a check-up if they have not attended the surgery in the previous 12 months.
This may be carried out at home if the patient's condition makes them housebound.
How to book
There are a certain number of pre-bookable appointments available for each doctor.
Every doctor has a certain number of appointments each day that are available for booking in advance.
We will always try to book you an appointment with your own doctor, but this may not be possible on that day, in which case we will offer you an appointment with another doctor.
Our appointments are all for 10 minutes. If you have multiple or complex problems you may need a further appointment.
Telephone consultations
As an alternative to an appointment you may be offered a telephone consultation. If you have a problem that could be dealt with over the phone (e.g., for advice, medication, follow-up, repeat sick note) please tell the receptionist, who will take your details and ask the doctor to phone you back (usually at the end of the morning surgery). Telephone consultations can be booked via Reception.
Doctors on leave
You are welcome to book an appointment with any other doctor in your own doctor's absence.
Practice Nurse appointments
Practice Nurse appointments should always be booked in advance as these clinics get very busy.
Private Medical Examinations.
Private Medical examinations should be booked in advance. Please tell the receptionist if you need to book either of these, as we follow separate guidelines for these types of appointments.
Any questions
If you are unsure about any of the above information please ask a receptionist for clarification.
If you need medical assistance after 6.30pm, at weekends or bank Holidays, you should telephone the Out of Hours service on 111.