Peartree Practice – Sholing

Very poor service from this practice. From not answering telephone, messing up appointments, tests and prescriptions to receptionists being rude and not apologising fir their mistakes. Not the caring GP surgery you would expect.

Please clean up around the building!! Ask the council or get a few volunteers every now and then, this place is an absolute tip! How is it even possible for doctors and nurses to be willing to work around this mess? It would demoralise me every morning if I had to see that.

Didn’t have high hopes for this practice when I moved here and needed to register for a GP, based on the reviews. So far my experiences couldn’t be further from the majority of these reviews. So far I have only had good experiences, using econsult I received a response from a practitioner the next day who quickly made the referrals I needed, and was understanding of my situation. As well as repeat prescriptions being filled in a fraction of the suggested waiting time. I cannot remember her name but the young receptionist who, after taking a bunch of abuse for a problem well out of her control and provided alternatives, seemingly shook off this stressful situation to be able to assist the next person, me. All with a calm friendly attitude that would suggest every person who came to her window before me was as pleasant as she.

Absolutely appalling & frankly doesn’t even deserve 1star! The receptionist mantra is e-consult which you do, raise real concerns for your health & the GP’s response is do another test. Deborah James has died from Bowel Cancer & all I see is tweets from the NHS spouting get checked out. Trying for months to get a colonoscopy & the GP insists it’s not necessary despite having all the warning symptoms. Too young apparently 😡🤬

I really wanted to give this place the benefit of the doubt. I came here after being at the University Health Service for 4 years of great service. It's probably not the practices fault they are clearly underfunded and serving more people than they can, getting routine appointments is a mystical art, blood tests, anything. I'd suggest looking at a different practice as it seems this one has a huge list of patients and not enough staff / hours.

Update 2022
Things have only gone downhill. Unless you live local and have the time to go reception in person, you won't get an appointment. They don't pick up the phone, the online booking system doesn't work and nobody in admin does what they say they're going to do. You will have to go in as often as possible to remind them to do things like send blood tests to clinics. And, as ever, some of the GPs have minimal knowledge on things like mental health and neurodivergence. All the nurses are absolutely lovely though.

I don’t think that GP services should exist.
I am not sure what they are being paid for? Probably for playing “ping pong” by diverting patients who knows where and not doing the job at all.

We have been discharged from hospital a couple of months ago. Hospital promised us an appointment to return to hospital after 4 weeks. 8 plus weeks gone, we are still waiting.
So, we have some concern and in need of check up to skip serious issues.
I called Peartree Surgery - as it is our Surgery to look after us. Right, I called them addressing the concern. Instead of booking lady in her 68 for check up, for blood test and referral to Hospital, GP doctor called us and deciding to help she “ping ponged” us and told us to call to Hospital or wherever we were in Hospital.
She said if we won’t have a luck chasing Hospital to call back to GP Surgery for another “ping pong” service.

Unfortunately, we yet had no luck, today will be another day of trying to “catch the bird for its tail”.

P.S

It is not the one case, in the summer I had pneumonia. I could not get hold of Peartree Surgery at all. Spoke to some E-GP and they told me to drink paracetamol, inhale Olbas etc.. . So I went to private practice and they saved me with strong antibiotics and treatment.

The practice has improved immensely from where it was and continues to improve. I've had to call upon them recently and, even in the midst of a Pandemic, the Receptionists, nurses and Doctors (and most likely all the other staff working in the background) have been superb. They have been reactive, professional and helpful. This is vastly different to the service of old (Bath Lodge in the later years) and is most welcome. For those using the practice I'd recommend using their website for up to date information which helps a lot. For those who can't then if you need to call the staff genuinely seem to try and help. I am grateful to them and do not give 5 stars lightly. I hope this level of service continues because it genuinely is appreciated!

the worst practice in Southampton, ladies on reception just don't care!! if you call them to book an appointment they just after short talk hanging out the call!! It's unacceptable when receptionist thinks she knows better than a doctor!