We appreciate that our patients are busy and wish to be seen on time. We do not wish to keep you waiting, but unfortunately there are times when our doctors do run late. There are several reasons for this and we offer some suggestions to help.
Patients come to a single appointment with many problems
This is probably the main reason the doctor does not run to time.
A ten minute appointment is usually only sufficient for the doctor to deal adequately with a single problem, although we would always give your problem full consideration if it takes longer.
If you feel you will need to spend more time with the doctor, or have a number of issues you wish to discuss, please book a double appointment.
If we have called you in for review we will not have time to deal with any other issues within the same appointment; please book an additional appointment so we can allocate the time that you need.
Patients arriving late for their appointment
Please try to arrive on time for your appointment. If you are late, every patient seen after you will probably be seen late.
Although we will usually try to “slot you in” somewhere if you are late, you may have to wait until the end of the surgery. We cannot guarantee we will be able to see you.
Other family members, friends wish to be seen at the same time
Please could we request one patient only per appointment?
No matter how quick you think the discussion will be, each consultation must be properly recorded, and it is not possible for our doctors to see two patients within a ten minute appointment slot.
Emergencies
Due to the nature of our work, it is inevitable that we will receive unavoidable emergency telephone calls, requests for help from other staff members, emergency consultations and home visits.
We ask for your understanding and empathy when these situations arise.
