Urgent appointments : If you feel your problem requires urgent advice or assessment by a GP, please inform the receptionist of this when you are requesting an appointment. Your details will then be passed to a GP who will arrange to speak to you on the telephone or see you in the surgery if necessary.

Do you need a GP appointment? : If you are requesting an appointment with a GP, please consider whether there is another way that your problem or query could be dealt with.

•    Ask a receptionist: Receptionists can often pass medication or prescription queries to a GP without the need for an appointment.

•    See the treatment room nurse: Our Nurses can help with and give advice for many common problems e.g. blood pressure checks, contraceptive pill reviews, wound problems, minor ailments and minor injuries.

•    Request a telephone consultation with a GP: Some telephone consultations may be booked on a daily basis with each GP.

•    Minor ailments: Most otherwise healthy adults and children with minor ailments like coughs, colds and sore throats do not need to see a GP. Please consider trying over the counter remedies or seeking advice from your pharmacist.

If you are in doubt about whether your problem can be dealt with without a GP appointment, please ask a receptionist.

You will not always be able to see your preferred GP: Unfortunately in a large busy practice like Mountsandel, it is inevitable that there will be times when an appointment with your preferred or usual GP is not available. Please consider seeing another GP in this circumstance. Your medical notes are fully computerised and available to any GP in the practice so continuity of care should not be compromised.

DNA (Did Not Attend) appointments: Patients who fail to attend appointments are denying other patients access to see their GP. All non-attendances are recorded and monitored. If you are unable to attend an appointment, please let us know in advance (even at short notice) so that the appointment will not be wasted.