Over this year, there have been rising pressures within the whole health and care system and at Robert Frew surgery we are doing everything we can to manage these pressures and prioritise patient care. We have noticed an increase in more and more patients attending the surgery early in the morning in order to make an appointment, we would like to provide reassurance that we are increasing the number of available appointments and adding more resource to reception to respond to more phone calls.
Please be assured we are doing everything we can and working with our partners to ease appointment booking and we have multiple ways to do this at our surgery, we have appointments available and we encourage you only attend in person if you are unable to use the following options.
Online – We have both on the day appointments and now an increased number of pre-bookable appointments you can book through the online system, if you wish to apply for online access, it is a quick and simple process. Book appointments online using SystmOnline.
We do appreciate some patients may not have online access or be confident in using this service, our automated telephone system is an easy to follow alternative. Please state when booking if the appointment is for a face to face or a telephone consultation.
Automated System – Contact the surgery on 01268 209229 and choose option 2. You will be asked to enter you date of birth and telephone number. You can book an appointment with a GP or Healthcare Assistant both on the day and pre-bookable up to 3 to 4 weeks in advance.
E-Consult – This is a new service on our website where you can request medical advice and guidance, as well as sick certificates and test results. Complete an online form using eConsult.
Telephone – we appreciate the phone lines are extremely busy but we do try to process these calls as quickly as possible.
In Person – You can come to the surgery to book your appointment but during the winter months we would prefer you to stay in the comfort of your home and book your appointment through one of the methods detailed above.
Cancelling your appointment
If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the slot to someone else.
In order to cancel your appointment you do not need to queue in our telephone system, please call our main telephone line 01268 209229 and select option 3 to cancel your appointment, then leave your Name, DOB (date of birth), date of the appointment and time. We would like to thank you in advance, by doing this it will free up valuable appointments for other patients.
Cancel your appointment using SystmOnline
If you need help when we are closed
- Use NHS 111 online (111.nhs.uk) or call 111. 111 online is for people aged 5 and over. Call 111 if you need help for a child under 5.
- Out of hours information
- If it’s a life-threatening emergency call 999.
Try the NHS App
You can now use the NHS App, a simple and secure way to access a range of NHS services and your GP account on your smartphone or tablet.
You can use the NHS App to check your symptoms and get instant advice, order repeat prescriptions, view your GP medical record and more.
If you already use online access you can continue to use it. You can use the NHS App as well.
For more information go to www.nhs.uk/nhsapp
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 you can help us by calling reception between 8:30am and 11:00am if you need a visit but indicate to the receptionist if you require urgent assistance. No home visit requests after 11:00am will be considered unless it is an acute emergency.
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 suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls
You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP.