The relationship between a GP surgery and their patients is based on trust, mutual respect, and open communication.
This partnership between GP surgeries and their patients is crucial for ensuring high-quality medical care and promoting overall health and well-being.
Below are listed some of the key elements that help to support and sustain the important relationship.
Named GP
The practice’s responsibilities
- All patients should be given a named GP within 20 days of registration and told so at the next appropriate time.
- The practice must confirm on their website that every patient has a named GP.
- If a patient requests a particular GP, reasonable efforts should be made to accommodate their preference.
- Practices are required to use the code ‘patient allocated named accountable general practitioner’ in the clinical system.
The responsibilities of a named GP
- The named GP is largely a role of oversight. It reassures patients they have one GP who is responsible for their care.
- Patients do not need to see their named GP when they book an appointment with the practice.
- Patients are entitled to choose to see any GP or nurse in the practice.
- The named GP works with relevant health and social care professionals to deliver a multi-disciplinary care package that meets the needs of the patient.
- The named GP ensures that these patients have access to a health check as set out in section 7.9 of the standard GMS contract.
- The named GP will not take on 24 hour responsibility for the patient, or have to change their working hours.
Attending your appointments
It is really important that you attend your scheduled appointments at the surgery.
If it is no longer convenient or you decide you no longer need it then please let us know as early as you possibly can. Demand for appointments is very high and, with enough notice, we can usually reallocate your appointment to another patient.
When a patient misses an appointment it is known as a ‘Did Not Attend’ (DNA).
If a patient persistently misses appointments with letting us know in advance in can harm the relationship of mutual trust with the practice. We may contact you by phone or letter to discuss this and what we can do together to improve things in the future.
Go to our ‘Appointments’ page to view how you can cancel an appointment
Zero tolerance policy
We expect to run the surgery so staff and patients are courteous and respectful to each other.
Go to our ‘Violent abusive behaviour’ page for further information.
Digital exclusion
If you have access to the internet and you are comfortable using digital services then the NHS App is the easiest way to interact with the surgery.
We encourage everyone who is able to use digital services to try them out and use them whenever possible.
You can use the app to carry out many of the basic interactions liking ordering medication or cancelling an appointment.
Doing these tasks via the NHS App can save you time and also reduces the amount of adminstration for the practice.
However we will make sure that technology is not a barrier that prevents patients accessing our services. We will always try make it clear how patients can access services without using digital apps.
Equally we will work to make sure the digital apps and our website meets the required standards for accessibility.
Go to our ‘Managing your health online’ page to see digital services used by the Practice.