Updated  20/03/2024  : from 22nd April 2024  - ROUTINE Face to face appointments can be booked for morning/afternoon surgeries.

If you feel you need seen on the day please ring between 8.30-9.30am each morning to speak to your usual GP who will triage your request. Due to the high volume of calls the doctors will only take calls from their own patients unless it is a medical emergency. You will be asked to give a brief message about your call to enable the GPs to prioritise their calls.  For safety standards the number of calls are capped and if the GP has reached capacity you may be asked to ring back. 

Please be respectful to our staff who are doing a difficult job during challenging times. They are carrying out instructions and protocols as directed from the GP partners

Appointments

Consultations are by appointment and can be booked over the telephone or in person at reception. As the practice works on personal lists we do  recommend that you see the doctor who knows you best.

If you consider your problem to be urgent please state this clearly and you will be seen on the same day.

Please note that an appointment is for one person. If any other family member needs to be seen you will need to book a separate slot.

Telephone Advice

The doctors can be accessed by telephone  between 08:30 -09.30 each morning.

Practice Nurse

In a number of cases it might be worth considering an appointment with a practice nurse rather than a doctor for the following types of consultations cervical smears, vaccines, BP monitoring etc. The reception staff will advise you when making an appointment.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the appointment time to someone else.

CURRENTLY  all home visit requests will be triaged via the telephone by the GP, please make your request 8.30-9.30am 

Home Visits

Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible. In this respect, if you do need a home visit, you can help us by telephoning reception before 10:30am.

You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. Your GP will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it and will also decide how urgently a visit is needed. Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide the receptionist with suitable details to enable the doctor to prioritise and schedule house calls

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website. If your employer requests evidence from your doctor for the first seven days you will be charged a fee for this service.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)

Teaching

In association with Queen's University Belfast, senior medical students sometimes attend the practice and "sit in" on surgery consultations. If you prefer to see the doctor alone the receptionist can arrange this for you.

We are recognised as a training practice and as part of the training some surgeries are video recorded. Your written consent will always be asked prior to this and we will inform you when you are making your appointment. The video tapes are used for teaching and training purposes only and are totally confidential