Attleborough Surgeries

Feedback

• Happy with service family perspective

  4

  Submitted by Anonymous 19th July 2022

  We recently moved to the area during COVID & are a young family of 4. I find the online system simple to use/explain symptoms & always get efficient communication back speaking to the necessary professional. Recently the system was changed to only being able to send messages in opening hours (due to demand I suspect) making it a little more frustrating when you work in the week. I understand this is still an improvement on neighbouring surgeries who have a 2 hour window! For a young family, the service we have received has been very good. We had a very understanding & caring response when our baby demonstrated intolerance symptoms from a GP late on Xmas eve via telephone call. Perhaps face to face opportunities have been lacking/last resort? The nursing service often has more availability for appointments & all nurses have been professional & caring during interventions. On 2 occasions, I’ve wondered whether a nurse appointment has been a substitute to a GP however likely due to demand? Overall, I would recommend this surgery to other families.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for this lovely review and for your recommendation of our Practice. The Practice employs a mixed skill mix including very experienced Advanced Care Practitioners (paramedic/nurse background who have undergone Masters level extended training) as well as GPs to support diagnosis and treatment arrangements. Through our triage arrangements we aim to ensure that a patients health issue is appropriately matched to the clinician that the patient is booked with. However, our non-GP clinicians always have access to and support from our doctors on site, should a second review or different assessment become apparent. Thank you once again for taking the time to share you positive comments.

• Atrocious surgery

  1

  Submitted by Anonymous 19th July 2022

  My 4 week old granddaughter almost died as a direct result of the total apathy from this surgery. We ended up in paediatric crash after being told it was just nappy rash and to go home! Temp wasn’t checked, no gloves were worn by Gp to check nappy area, total lack of interest. It was late onset Strep… We moved surgeries and I would never use this practice again. Shouldn’t be allowed to have the rights to both surgeries. We urgently need another practice in Attleborough to give residents an actual choice and not just a wing and a prayer option of using these people.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for leaving your review regarding your concerns relating to the clinical care provided for your granddaughter. This is a circumstance in which we would need further patient details in order to investigate the serious concerns that you have raised and to respond to you on the pathway of care and the decisions that were taken at the time of examination. If you would like to contact the surgery directly and provide further details we would be very happy to investigate this matter and discuss this with you further.

• Carry on as well as you can.

  4

  Submitted by Anonymous 19th July 2022

  I have always been helped quickly and usually efficiently. What I like less is, that you can have another GP than your own. The people, usually ladies, at reception are polite and helpful. It are the waiting lists in other places, I urgently need an epidural, that bother me the most.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for your feedback and sharing the good experience that you have had with our services, including your interaction with our reception team. We are sorry that you continue to have to wait for an epidural, which has come about as a result of many months of redirected work within the hospital as a result of covid infection and them needing to dedicate significant resources to critical patient management. While I completely understand your frustration, I think it is important that we remember how hard our NHS colleagues worked when we needed them most. Unfortunately hospital waiting times are outside of our control and I am aware that plans are being developed in order to reduce these, but they remain a national problem.

• Could be better

  4

  Submitted by Anonymous 19th July 2022

  Can't get face to face appt without begging and explaining everything in minute details to the receptionist. You asked to send photo of anything physical, bit hard to get clear picture especially if live alone. Reviews of prescriptions massively behind. The website closes very quickly to leave any messages. Understand staffing is main issue. There are only couple excellent doctors in Attleborough who actually care and have time for you. Prescriptions between doctors and chemist often messed up and blame each other. Individual staff are ok but they managers need to understand this town is becoming huge and facilities can't cope.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for your feedback, which is always appreciated. We are sorry that you have found accessing a face to face appointment difficult and we would like to reassure you that the Practice continues to offer a vast amount of face to face appointments across all of our clinical staff including GPs. These are offered alongside using our on-line system, which was introduced to enable us to manage a higher demand, in a safe way, and is in line with the national requirements to provide on-line access to patients. Unfortunately due to a significant increase in demand it is necessary to manage patients health issues in a broader way, including using the facility to send photos in for review where this is deemed clinically appropriate. We understand that this is a different approach to the more traditional model of care, but it does enable our clinical teams to manage a higher number of patients each day, which has become essential as demand has increased. The Practice has been suffering recently along with the rest of our community with covid infection rates within our staff and this has impacted on all services, including our dispensary team. The team continue to work to a 2 day turnaround, which is met the majority of time, but unfortunately we are also managing a large upsurge in workload as a result of the Chemists deciding last month to withdraw managing the repeat medication requirements of the patients that they serve and passing this work to the Practice. We are sorry that we have not met your expectations and for the frustrations you have and we continue to work hard to provide a good level of service to the patients that we serve.

• Health check appointment

  5

  Submitted by CB 14th July 2022

  Contacted by Surgery that routine review needed. Easily booked appointment at convenient time (ahead but no urgency and suited me). Greeted by friendly, knowledgeable receptionist. Medication query sorted quickly, again by friendly staff. Appointment was on time and check carried out efficiently and in courteous, respectful manner. Advised there would be prescription raised and it arrived via Pharmacy2U (my preferred prescription method - which incidentally I recommend wholeheartedly andI guess helps the Surgery Dispensary - a few days later. All in all a great experience of healthcare. Thank you

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for this lovely review. Its great to read how easy you found the booking for your NHS Health check appointment and how seamless the process was from booking to completion of the review. Thank you for taking the time to leave this feedback, which is really appreciated by the Surgery and our Practice staff.

• A shambles of an administrative service

  1

  Submitted by Anonymous 10th June 2022

  I have now lost count of the number of times we have experienced errors with booking our appointments. Between my partner, myself and our 2-year old daughter, we have been turned away because of clerical errors just too many times! As if it wasn't hard enough to get an appointment - you call up and wait 20 mins to speak to someone who is ultimately rude, and says they have no available appointments. Or you try to go through the booking system online to get given an appointment you can't attend.... and then can't rearrange by calling someone bacK! Ultimately if it's just too hard to get to see a doctor/nurse, you just give up and this is ultimately going to cost lives. We are already seeing how delays over COVID has led to late diagnoses across the country, which is equating to rather serious implications. I completely understand that we are all just doing what we can with what we have, but is this really the best they can do - honestly? I'd write a compliant to the surgery itself, but a quick investigation informs me I have to send it in the post. They have an online booking system, which they strongly urge everyone to use, but can't receive an online complaint or even have an email? Come on, it's almost like they are purposely trying to make it difficult to dissuade people from bothering. Now, on the flipside the medical staff are really great (when you get to see them). The team has been utterly amazing with our little one and we thank them for that. But surely something can be done to improve the quality of their admin to avoid these needless errors - they waste everyone's time especially the doctors who don't have enough time to see people as it is! There is a dire need to spend some more effort training the reception staff to understand their processes.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  We are sorry to read about the frustrations you have experienced when trying to access our services. We are always happy to investigate concerns and issues raised by our patients, so please do get in contact directly with the Practice with your details in order that we can review your issues further. There are a number of ways in which you can provide feedback or raise a complaint with the Practice, both in writing to the Surgery, submitting details through our on-line website system; click the tile for \'Practice Information\' and use the \'contact the practice\' form or you can email a complaint to r.reception@nhs.net. We are always sorry to hear when we have not met patient expectations. We are an extremely busy Practice and our staff all work hard to support our patients and we are keen to get it right. Thank you for your very kind feedback regarding the clinical staff who have supported you and your family with their health matters.

• Station Rd Surgery-Fantastic

  5

  Submitted by Louise A-D 18th May 2022

  I have a lot of medical issues that have always been dealt with promptly & professionally at Station Rd Surgery. In the last 2yrs I have had emergency spine surgery, spinal nerve injections, nerve damage to right leg, broken hip (right) hip replacement, there’s more but I won’t bore you. I have always been given amazing care & compassion by my Gp, who always goes above & beyond to explain everything thoroughly & that I do actually understand. I have also had treatment from the practice nurses at Queens Square surgery, who are also very compassionate & caring when giving treatment. The pharmacy team at Station Rd have gone above & beyond to make sure I have the correct medication when needed, even with short notice. I have no complaints about the surgery, only praise. I feel it is very rare these days to find a Gp that will actually take time to listen. I highly recommend both surgeries from personal experience. 10/10 Thankyou

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for this great feedback and wonderful review. I think that you have covered almost every department in your praise and feedback ! and I will ensure that our teams receive details of the compliments you have shared, which is always a great boost to morale.

• Booking appointments

  1

  Submitted by Anonymous 11th May 2022

  I have not had a face to face appointment since lockdown, which I understand. However when wishing to contact the surgery regarding ongoing or new conditions I could only fill in the form between opening hours of 9-5. DO computers and forms need to go OFFLINE?! My symptoms and needs are the same when I fill in the form at 8-59am and 5-01pm While today at 2pm I go to fill in the form and it is not available due to high demand. I am happy to be triaged as to my need and sign posted to relative medical professional but THERE IS NO FORM Get your IT act together. Does it help or hinder access?

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for your feedback and we are sorry to learn of the frustration you have had when trying to contact the surgery. Unfortunately since providing on-line access to our patients, in line with national requirements for primary care services, we have seen our demand increase by over 100%. It is important that we manage this demand safely rather than simply allowing requests to be sent to us 24/7. This enables us to appropriately direct and advise patients when our capacity is full. We do not provide an out of hours service and there are alternative routes for advice, treatment and support that should be used when the Practice is closed. When we do find it necessary to close a small amount of our on-line forms during the day, we do provide advice regarding alternative services that can be contacted, along with ensuring that those with an urgent need feel able to telephone us to discuss their problem. The on-line system does provide many benefits and a high majority of our patients are very happy with the convenience of the access this provides and the additional routes of receiving a response, advice and treatment from an experienced clinician, including providing face to face appointments where appropriate and necessary.

• Brilliant service and care provided

  5

  Submitted by Rachel 27th April 2022

  10 month old was unwell within 2 hours of submitting an online form the Dr rang, and then we were bought into the surgery at a time that suited us for my baby to be seen. Dr Reed provided brilliant care, was very reassuring and kind. Thank you to the surgery & Dr Reed.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for this lovely review. Our Same Day Clinic team are a fantastic group of staff who work very hard to meet the needs of urgent on the day issues that present in our patients. We have specifically passed on your comments regarding Dr Read as know it will be lovely for him to learn of your very kind feedback. Thank you for taking the time to share your very positive experience.

• Quick reply

  5

  Submitted by Anonymous 14th April 2022

  I contacted the surgery using their online form today to ask for help for my father-in-law for a non-emergency appointment and I was very impressed with how quickly the surgery replied to me, they only took 20 minutes! Someone is going to contact him next week. Thank you for the speedy reply.

• Reply from Attleborough Surgeries

  Thank you for your lovely feedback. The on-line system is enabling us to manage the very high demand from our patients in a much more time effective way, which is also safer for our patients as waits to have a health problem reviewed and a decision made regarding sending advice or arranging an appointment are much quicker. While we understand that this is a change from the traditional model of every patient being booked to be seen, it is great to hear your positive experience when accessing our services for your father-in-law.