March this year saw one of the highest numbers of face-to-face appointments in general practice in Dorset for the past 12 months. There were 464,000 appointments in total last month. 308,000 of these were face-to-face appointments and over half of these were with skilled healthcare professionals other than a GP including Advanced Nurse Practitioners, General Practice Nurses and Physiotherapists.
“There are now many varied roles that make up the general practice workforce,” said Dr Paul Johnson, Chief Medical Officer for NHS Dorset. “This often means that an appointment with a GP is not always needed. An appointment with another healthcare professional, such as a Mental Health Practitioner, might be more suited to the health concern.
“The growing teams of health professionals in our GP surgeries means we are more able to ensure that people are seen in a timely way, by the appropriate person.”
The data shows that 176,000 of the appointments in March were same day appointments with either a GP or a health professional. This includes telephone, home visit and face to face. 81,000 people were offered an appointment within two to seven days.
Dr Lisa Nayler, GP Partner at Shore Medical Partnership in Poole said, “My colleagues and I, including Healthcare Practitioners, Nurses, our Receptionists, are busier than ever. We want to thank people for their understanding that the way they use GP surgeries is changing.
“If you have access to the internet, visit your surgery website and see what digital tools your surgery offers. Often the quickest and preferred method is completing a consultation form online.
“These forms come through to a team of medical professionals and lead to signposting to the right service for you, sometimes a call back or appointment, sometimes directing to other professionals better placed to help with your problems.
“If you are phoning or a walk-in, our receptionists will ask you questions because they are trained to be able to recommend the best course of action for each patient that comes into the surgery.
“As you are aware, you might be offered an appointment to see someone other than a GP. We now have multidisciplinary teams of healthcare professionals within practices who are there to make sure you get the right care at the right time.
“This has been a fantastic change in general practice in the last couple of years, meaning you see skilled practitioners that are best place to help you. Our teams consist of Advance Nurse Practitioners, Physiotherapists, Pharmacists, Social Prescribers, Mental Health Workers to name but a few.
“Remember you can also visit your nearest pharmacy for minor ailments such as headaches, aches and pains, cold and flu symptoms, some skin complaints and fungal nail infections.”
People contacting their GP practice should now expect to be triaged to ensure that they see an appropriate healthcare professional depending on what their symptoms are and this might not be a GP. In this way, the whole general practice team are helping people to be seen as quickly as possible.
Visit your practice website or social media for more information about what they can offer or ask a member of the reception team.
Thank you for choosing the right NHS service: www.staywelldorset.nhs.uk
