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 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
Other family members, friends wish to be seen at the same time – we kindly 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; patients may need to be admitted to hospital, requests for help from other staff members, emergency consultations and home visits.
It is not the fault of the receptionists when GP’s run late. We ask for your understanding and empathy when these situations arise.