For many minor conditions it may be appropriate to consult self-care via NHS 111 111.nhs.uk
Or to discuss with your community pharmacist – more information on the new Pharmacy service can be found here Community Pharmacist Consultation Service
If you have had a minor injury the minor injuries unit at Paulton will be most appropriate 01761 412315
Please be aware if you ring the surgery for a minor injury it may be some time before one of our nurses can see you, if at all, as they will already have pre-booked appointments and the minor injuries unit at Paulton has been commissioned to deliver this service to patients.
If you have a more serious clinical concern which does not warrant a 999 call, your call will initially be managed by our reception team care navigators.
Please be aware receptionists are working hard to help you and will need you to give them some details of your condition in order to get you the most appropriate appointment and to see the most appropriate health care professional.
We work closely together with our wide team of practice clinical pharmacists, community pharmacists, physiotherapists and our excellent nursing team and sometimes they may be more appropriate to meet your needs.
If your condition requires an urgent response from a doctor or nurse then you will be forwarded to a telephone triage call back from a GP or specialist duty nurse on the same day.
If during your telephone consultation you and/or the Dr decide that you would be best assessed by a face to face appointment in the surgery then this will be arranged.
If you wish to discuss a more routine / complex or ongoing issue then we aim to allocate all patients to a “usual GP” within the practice and encourage patients to see this GP for these conditions.
There is considerable evidence that getting to know one GP best improves outcomes and satisfaction.
We are very pleased to welcome some excellent new doctors to our team and you may note that we have recently re-allocated some of our patients to new GPs in order to balance out the numbers and make this more possible.
It will be worth checking the information under the teams tab to see when you GP is in.
Most days if you ring in the morning when your GP is in the building you will be able to have a telephone call back that day.
There will however be occasional times when due to increased demand this may not be possible and you will be offered either an urgent appointment if your condition merits this or may be asked to call back another time.
Please be aware that nationally there is a significant shortfall of GPs and although we are all working very hard it is not always possible to meet everyone’s wants within our healthcare system. We aim to meet needs as much as possible.
It is up to all of us to reduce any unnecessary contacts and to use the limited resources that we have wisely. Therefore please consider carefully before ringing the surgery.
Please do not take out any frustration regards this national shortfall problem on our hardworking reception / admin and clinical teams and understand that there is no place for aggressive behaviour towards our staff.