Changing Appointment Booking System to eConsult

We are really pleased to be able to tell you about important changes to our appointment system from Wednesday, 15 July.  We are introducing a new online consultation system called eConsult.

eConsult enables NHS based GP practices to offer online consultations to their patients. This will allow you to submit your symptoms or requests to your own GP electronically, and offers around the clock NHS self-help information, signposting to services, and a symptom checker.

We are excited to be adopting the system and hope that the use of eConsult will have many benefits to you including;

  • eConsult allows you to give us information about your problem, so that when we receive your request at the practice we can ensure this is dealt with by the right person in the most efficient and timely manner
  • Admin queries can be dealt with swiftly, and clinical problems will be passed to your usual doctor who will respond to you either on the same day or the following day.
  • When the Doctor speaks to you, he/she will have a lot more information about you and the problem you wish to discuss and be able to make a plan with you over the telephone about what happens next.
  • If you need to be seen face to face, this will be arranged at an appropriate time with your doctor. We will of course continue to ensure that we are following the Governments guidance on social distancing and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) keeping both you and our staff safe.
  • Other surgeries have found that waiting times to speak to or see a doctor have been significantly reduced. In addition you won’t have to stay on hold on the phone for long periods whilst trying to get through to our busy reception team as you will be able to provide the information at a time that is convenient to you.
  • eConsult DOES NOT mean that we will not speak to you or see you if we need to.

We recognise of course, that some patients will be unable to use eConsult for many reasons.  For those that are unable to use eConsult our reception team will guide you through a series of simple questions that will provide your doctor with useful information before you speak to them. Our preferred route however will be through econsult.

Please use the link below to view this excellent video which explains more about what eConsult is and what it looks like: