Forum Topic

GP recommendation?

Are you very happy with your GP and surgery staff? Feel free to PM me if you prefer.

Holly Hodges ● 5292d10 Comments

Completely agree, but he's always booked up for weeks in advance.  No chance of getting an appointment for next or even a few days time.

Pat Kingham ● 5272d

We think Dr Stuart Lane at the Health Centre is wonderful. Very experienced, straight-talking, but kind as well.  Super sense of humour.

Deborah Hall ● 5283d

Yes, that is the big problem with same-day appointments. Bafflingly, the medical profession seems unable to grasp why the patient would prefer to see the same doctor each time. At least the plan to bring in Polyclinics to make this even more of a problem seems to have died with the Brown government.

Susan Kelly ● 5288d

To clarify, I am registered at the health centre, but due to the limitations of the appointment-making process (if you can't wait three weeks for your appointment you just have to see whoever is available), I've seen many of the GPs in my practice but don't really know any of them.

Holly Hodges ● 5288d

Yes Kate - I hadn't expected that!

Holly Hodges ● 5288d

I'm also old enough to have had a GP where you went and waited. And waited. And waited. Often half the bloody day. How is that better than an appointment system? He was also in Bath Rd. Maybe the same old codger.Agree about abuse, though. Interesting letter in the paper a month ago from a GP: first patient, elderly man in best suit, apologised for 'wasting doctor's time', crushing chest pains, heart attack; second patient, girl in her pyjamas, woken up with a bit of a sore throat, too gormless to buy some Strepsils.

Susan Kelly ● 5288d

On the issue of appointments, I am baffled (or perhaps not I have my own theories) but, I am old enough to remember the days before appointments were necessary to see a doctor.  My old family doctor was in the Bath Road in Chiswick and if you needed to see him you just showed up and waited in the waiting room (no receptionist) and you took your turn going in.  Our doctor knew who you were without any introduction.  Surgery was over when he had seen everyone waiting.  After morning surgery he did house calls and you didn't need to ask him or call him, if he was treating you for something he just showed up.  He was not only a GP he was also a surgeon.  Patients didn't abuse the NHS in the 50s/60s (in my family you needed to be really ill before you troubled the doctor) but it seemed to work very well.  What happened?

Bernadette Paul ● 5288d

Apologies..the thread heading asked for a recommendation but her post asked whether satisfied with gp.

Keith Iddon ● 5289d

Holly did not ask for a recommendation.If you do want one Holly,go to the Brentford Health Centre and they will tell you which catchment area entitles you to either one of the 2 surgeries that are run from there.If you fall under the Albany surgery,Dr.Baxter is a good bloke imo. and has a nice,old fashioned approach and is easy to talk with.The main problem I think is the restrictive regime of booking an appointnent.You have to call up between 8:30-8:45 in the hope of getting an appt.for that day.It always means constantly redialing the number as it is always engaed between these times.Often,when you do get through you get an appt.for a time when you are at work and those who are not at work have taken any appt.you could have made.Ironic really,as it is the tax and ni that workers pay that pay for all these appointments.A call queueing system would be far better so that you only had to phone once and then hang on for your turn.

Keith Iddon ● 5289d

Holly, it is a bit worrying that no one wants to recommend their GP. I hope that you've found one.

Kate Carruthers ● 5289d