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The way you contact your GP practice is changing

First published: 7 March 2024. Updated 14 March 2024. 

We’re changing the way you make an appointment, and request admin support.

From 22 March 2024 if you need an appointment, or if you have an admin request you will need to fill in our new online form. You will no longer be given an appointment over the telephone or when you visit the practice.

Patients will need to complete our new easy to use online form. The form asks just 3 questions about what you need. The form will then be looked at by the team and they will come back to you the same day with the next steps.

If you cannot fill in the form online, our team will fill it in and submit it for you.

Once the form has been submitted, you will be contacted with:

Appointments

  • This new system will help us make the most of our appointments. You may be seen in the GP practice (face to face) or you may be offered a telephone appointment.
  • We want you to see the right person at the right time, so your request will first be reviewed by one of our clinical team. You may be offered an appointment with one of our primary care team. We are a team of many different skills and qualifications and your appointment would be with someone who can best attend to your needs:
    • A GP (doctors)
    • A member of our nursing team
    • A Primary care paramedic
    • A Physicians Associate (PA)
    • An Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP)
    • A Healthcare Assistant (HCA)
  • We want to give you more choice, so you may be offered a range of appointment slots, and you can book the time and date that works best for you.
  • If an appointment is not the best result for you, we will let you know where you can go for your help. This may be managing your problem at home, speaking to one of our administrative team, or visiting a Pharmacist, or other community service.

 Prescription/medication requests

  • Please submit your repeat prescription requests via the NHS App.
  • Please allow a minimum of 2 working days for requests to be actioned.
  • If you wish to request an item that is not on your repeat medication list, please request via the online form and select admin query.
  • If you are unable to use the NHS App or complete the online form your self the team will review your prescription/medication request and email/call/text you with the next steps. This may be asking you to visit your pharmacy to collect a prescription, or you may be invited for a medication review.

 Administration requests

Requests like fit/sick notes, licence forms, DWP forms, referrals and test results will all be sent the right team within Nexus. That team will contact you the same day with a response to your query, or the information you need for next steps.

 Where is the new form?

From 22 March, you will find the form on the NHS app and our website.

  • The form is faster than eConsult and easier to use because it only asks 3 questions.
  • You can use the form for children, including those under the age of 1 years old.
  • You can access the new form on a smart phone, tablet or computer.
  • You can also submit a form on the NHS app.

I don’t have access to the internet / I cannot fill in the form.

We are here to help. If you are unable to access the online form we can complete it for you, just ask our team to assist you when they answer your call. You can also ask our reception teams at your GP practice to help you. All requests need to be made using the new form, but the team will be more than happy to fill it out for you.

Can I still telephone or visit my practice to ask for help?

You can still call us on the telephone, or visit us in person if you prefer. Our teams will not be able to give you an appointment on the call or at your visit but they will fill in the online form for you and the team will get back to you the same day with an appointment or advice/support.

Our clinical team

Your telephone or face to face appointment may be with:

  • Our GP Partners or site based GPs. They lead our clinical and non-clinical multidisciplinary teams to delivery holistic care to our patients. 
  • Our Physicians Associates. Physician associates are medically trained, generalist healthcare professionals, who work alongside doctors and provide medical care as an integral part of the multidisciplinary team. Physician associates are dependent practitioners working with a dedicated medical supervisor, but are able to work autonomously with appropriate support.
  • Our Paramedics. Our team of Paramedics work across all Nexus sites and are highly trained in dealing with acute medical issues. They They run minor illness clinics in the surgery alongside our GPs plus also perform acute home visits for our housebound patients. 
  • Our Nurses. We have a full nursing team across all our sites who have all done further training to become competent in skills needed for General Practice. Practice nurses can carry out cervical smears, immunisations, contraception reviews, wound care and chronic disease management such as asthma, COPD and Diabetes. Many Practice nurse appointments are available to book online and they also have telephone call appointments that can be booked for queries on nursing matters such as immunisations.  
  • Our Health Care Assistants. Health care assistants work with the nursing team and are trained in adult immunisations, phlebotomy, wound care, ear syringing, NHS health checks, 24 hour BP monitoring and some annual reviews.
  • Our Advanced Nurse Practitioners. Advanced Nurse Practitioners are experienced Nurses who have undergone several more years of advanced training in order to become Nurse Practitioners. Their role is to assess, diagnose and treat patients and they are also able to prescribe medication.
  • Our Pharmacists. Pharmacists are responsible for the safe prescribing of complex and high risk medicines. They respond to central medicine alerts and conduct prescribing safety audits and adjust medication charts post hospital discharges.