Shadbolt Park House Surgery

I expect my star rating would be 5 if it wasn't for the problems getting an appointment.

I can't fault the reception staff that have been as helpful as they could, however trying to get a timely appointment is near on impossible. Routine appointments are with a week or more wait and also extremely difficult to get an appointment time that would not interfere with work. I actually resorted to trying to get an emergency appointment.

Last week I phoned at 2pm, it took over 10 minutes to get through by which time I was told there were no more appointments left. The receptionist kindly offered to put me on a waiting list for cancellations. I missed a call the same evening, calling back only a few minutes later to be told that the appointment time was for 5 minutes time, meaning I couldn't get there.

This morning, I went to the surgery in person to book an emergency appointment and unfortunately the Dr covering today's emergency appointments was unwell so there are no appointments available. Luckily I have now managed to get a routine appointment for next week.

In the waiting room I noticed on their information display '50 people did not cancel their appointments last month, inconsiderate to say the very least! I would back a penalty charge to patients that fail to give notice that their appointment is no longer necessary, they are wasting time of Dr's and wasting appointment times for people that genuinely need to be seen. People need to stop seeing the nhs as a free service to be abused and treat it a privilege to be seen free of charge at the point of need.

Reception staff have little by way of customer service skills and empathy. They seem to enjoy telling you that you can't be seen etc. They would be better employed as bouncers at pub throwing out time. Get rid of the reception staff, get some new ones, make the appointment process more welcoming and less obstructive.
There are some good doctors but you can't get past the unpleasant women on reception to see them
I've been registered there for nearly 30 years and it's got worse since Dr Laws and Dr Bowen Perkins left.
I'm surprised nothing seems to have been done following previous complaints about reception staff. You have to wonder if the new management care.

Recommended by two friends, the surgery is great. The reception staff registered me super quickly to get treatment, following through on commitment to find me an appointment. I was treated by three nurses over a month who were accommodating, finding slots to enable I could get treated. Recommend to anyone in the local area!

When we’ve really needed help from this surgery they have come through for us. We recently had a baby which meant we became more regular customers. They have a wonderful receptionist who has been on duty our last few visits who I’ve found friendly, welcoming and helpful. We’ve seen a number of their doctors, based on availability, and some have gone beyond expectations to assist with our hardest challenges.

Getting an appointment has always been difficult, even before COVID where usually the earliest appointment would be exactly two weeks later. Under current COVID procedures only same day appointments can be arranged which is a lottery to get through on the phone. All appointments are gone within a few minutes of the booking windows opening at 8am and 2pm. This is the biggest challenge for this surgery to resolve.

I find the reception really rude and no idea of what customer service is .
You are dealing with sick and vulnerable patients. The least you can do is to be human enough to listen and help. You continue to make mistakes and refuse to look into matters. I am not impressed at all with this surgery

Completely gone down hill. One Doc was so rude, she made me feel like I was wasting her time. On another occasion, I had three brief issues (as I had put off contacting the surgery beforehand) I was told to pick one. Then told to call back for the others. The issue dealt with took seconds but the Doctor could not wait to get off the phone. One positive thing, nurses are great.

Absolutely awful! Just been to the opticians who advised I had a small haemorrhage at the back of my eye and needed to get a blood pressure check and blood test done! Ring the surgery and they don’t accept the opticians advice. You have to see a Dr but no routine appointments available only emergency on the day. Ever tried getting an emergency appointment at this surgery? it’s almost impossible! Come back Dr Laws! A new team is needed at this surgery it’s an absolute joke!😱

Rude and unacceptable customer service from the surgery reception staff and not for the first time (and it seems from these reviews I am not the only one to experience this). It truly amazes me how the reception staff are able to find work in health ‘care’ when their attitude to patients is the complete opposite of caring!