Appointments

Consultations are by appointment and can be booked in person at the surgery or over the telephone during opening hours.  The surgery also offers an online triage system - all online requests are actioned within 48 hours. These requests will be triaged and signposted to an appointment booked with the most appropriate clinician or service. 

To submit an online triage request - please click the below link:

https://florey.accurx.com/p/P89026

Our reception staff are trained to do a basic triage of on-the-day appointments to ensure you see the most appropriate clinician. Some requests can be dealt with by a GP over the telephone.  Our staff will advise you if this is an option.

Telephone consultations are available daily.

Practice Nurses & Healthcare Assistants

In a number of cases it might be worth considering an appointment with a practice nurse or healthcare assistant rather than a doctor. Both are qualified to deal with many conditions and you may be seen more quickly.

Primary Care Network Appointments

The Primary Care Network is an extension of the services we are able to offer in practice and all staff employed by the PCN are members of our team and are able to access our computer systems the same as if they were based within our practice. The PCN provides services for all practices within our area. We offer musculoskeletal specialist appointments, out of hours appointments with GPs, Nurses and Healthcare assistants, physician associate appointments and mental health practitioner appointments.  The majority of PCN appointments are located at our Primary Care Network Hub, 1st Floor, St Andrews House, Waterloo Road, Stalybridge, SK15 2AU. If you would like to access any of these services please call the practice or the PCN directly on 0161 393 2976.

Referrals

If you need to be referred, the GP will explain the choices of hospitals and services available to you. If the doctor refers you to a hospital, you may be asked to come back and collect some paperwork from the surgery, to enable you to book your appointment on the e-referral system.  If you have a particular preference for which hospital you would like to go to, or if you would like to know which one has the soonest appointment, please ask to speak to the Secretary.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the slot to someone else. An entry on the medical notes is automatically recorded when patients fail to attend.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available eith at reception, from your employer, or on the HMRC website.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)

Home Visits

Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible. In this respect, if you do need a home visit, you can help us by calling reception between 09:00 - 11:00. 

You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. Your GP will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it and will also decide how urgently a visit is needed. Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls.

You may be visited by one of our Nurses or Health Care Assistants if deemed necessary by a GP.

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.