Appointments

Our doctors and nurses see patients by appointment.

All patients are registered to a specific GP, however you are entitled to book with any doctor of your choice. Patients are put under a specific doctor’s name for administrative purposes only. If you have an urgent problem which cannot wait for the next available appointment for your usual doctor, you may be requested to see another doctor.

Appointment System Information

Regal Chambers Surgery uses a telephone/online assessment appointment system.  All patients seeking medical advice, urgent or non urgent, are required to speak to a clinician in the first instance or submit information via our digital platform AccuRx. If a face to face appointment is necessary then this will be made by the assessing clinician.

You can access AccuRx by either clicking on the red online consult tile or the “contact us online” banner on the home page.

Telephone assessment appointments can be made by calling our reception team.  When calling the surgery, patients are asked to briefly explain the reason for the appointment.  This will enable the clinician to determine the priority of the call back.  All appointment requests will be placed on a telephone call back list. This includes patients who walk into the surgery to request an appointment.

The assessing clinician will contact patients on the list  in order of clinical priority and deal with the problems using a variety of approaches. The clinician may be able to provide advice over the telephone, a text message or email with advice may be sent to the patient or the patient may be asked to attend a face to face appointment.  The clinician will try to call patients twice and if there is no answer the appointment will be logged as a Did Not Attend (DNA).

When the surgery has reached capacity and there are no available appointments for the day, patients will be signposted to alternative services including 111 or the Urgent Care Centre.  Patients can choose to hold the line and speak to reception.  Reception will discuss symptoms with the duty doctor and if appropriate, an appointment will be made.

Patients who are seeking to book an appointment with the Practice Nurse or Healthcare Assistant are able to book these via reception.  We also send remote booking links to patients who have long term conditions and are required to book an annual review. The phone lines are always very busy first thing in the morning. We strongly advise those of you wishing to book ROUTINE appointments to call between the hours of 10:00 – 12:45 or 13:45 – 18:30.

Priority for Sick Children

Sick children are seen as soon as possible after their arrival at the practice and this may be quicker than a home visit. If you are in any doubt about bringing your child out please call the surgery first and the doctor can advise.

Why your appointment may be late

Emergencies can arise from time to time and we hope you will understand if doctors and nurses are called out during a surgery. Similarly some problems require more of your doctor’s time and therefore the surgeries may run late.

Remember – one day it may be you who needs the extra time.

If you need help with your appointment

Please tell us:

• If there’s a specific doctor, nurse or other health professional you would prefer to respond.
• If you would prefer to consult with the doctor or nurse by phone, face-to-face, by video call or by text or email.
• If you need an interpreter.
• If you have any other access or communication needs.

Cancelling or changing an appointment

To cancel your appointment:

• use your NHS account (on the NHS website or in the app).
• phone us, Monday to Friday, when we are open.
• visit your usual surgery and speak with a receptionist, Monday to Friday, when we are open.
• complete an online form on this website.

If you need help when we are closed

If you need medical help now, use NHS 111 online or call 111.

NHS 111 online is for people aged 5 and over. Call 111 if you need help for a child under 5.

Call 999 in a medical or mental health emergency. This is when someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk.

Walk in Centres

NHS Walk-in centres provide treatment for minor injuries and illnesses seven days a week. You do not need an appointment and will be seen by an experienced NHS nurse.

Adult Urgent Treatment Centre, Lister Hospital

Luton NHS Walk-in Centre, 14-16 Chapel Street, Luton, Bedfordshire, LU1 2SE – Tel: 01582 556400

Urgent Care Centre – New QE11 Hospital, Howlands, Welwyn Garden City, Herts, AL7 4HQ – Tel: 01438 314333

Extended Access Services

Patients are able to see a GP or another health professional in a local surgery at Portmill Surgery, 114 Queen Street, Hitchin, Hertfordshire, SG4 9TH between 6.30pm and 8.00pm on weekdays, 9.00am and 5.00pm on Saturdays.

To arrange an appointment please speak to a member of the Reception Team on 01462 453232 option 2.

Reasons For A Home Visit

Appropriate

• Bed Bound
• Terminally Ill

The Small Print:

• Patients do not have an automatic right to a home visit
• Under their terms of working, doctors are required to consider home visits for medical reasons only
• If you think you qualify for a home visit, please ring before 10.00 a.m.
• All visit requests will be medically assessed to check if appropriate and a doctor will call you to assess urgency.

Inappropriate

• No transport or money
• Children, young people and anyone who is mobile
• Social reasons or convenience
• Other help more appropriate

Home Visiting at Regal Chambers Surgery – information for patients

Home visits, whilst convenient, actually offer a poorer standard of care compared to surgery consultations. This is because of:

• Poor facilities (e.g. soft beds, poor lighting, lack of hygiene)
• Inefficiency (the doctor could see 4 to 6 equally needy patients in the time taken for a home visit)
• Lack of records and chaperones (required for safe care and examinations)

We have noticed that many patients are requesting visits that are inappropriate or unnecessary. This is having a negative impact upon other aspects of our service. Calling the doctor out unnecessarily takes them away from patients who may be in more clinical need. Most of the consultations during home visits could easily and safely be carried out in the surgery. Because patients might not know this, we are letting you know our policy on home visits

Some Myths about Home Visits (all of these are not true)

• “It’s my right to have a home visit” – under GP terms of service, it is actually up to the doctor to decide in their reasonable opinion where a consultation should take place
• “I should get a visit because I’m old” – our clinical work should not discriminate simply based on age alone
• “I can’t bring little Freddie out in this weather” – no-one will be harmed by being wrapped up and brought in
• “The doctor needs to be check I’m ready to go into hospital/have a ward to go to” – paramedics can provide initial lifesaving care and patients will be dealt with appropriately by A&E departments
• “I’m housebound” – being housebound does not always prevent use of transport
• “Can the GP just pop out and see me” – we have fully booked surgeries and cannot simply drop everything to visit people urgently

Where Home Visits are NOT appropriate (some examples only)

• Children, young people or anyone who is mobile – children are portable and can be seen quickly in the surgery
• Lack of money or transport – this is not a medical responsibility. It is up to patients to organise transport
• Lack of childcare or been drinking alcohol and not able to drive – this is not a medical responsibility
• Can’t get out due to bad weather – we are also affected by snow, ice and bad weather
• Times visits between hairdressing and shopping appointments – patients who are clearly mobile are taking doctors and nurses away from patients more at need
• Well but need a check over to make sure everything is alright – our priority is seeing the unwell
• Other help more appropriate – e.g. if you think you are having a heart attack or a stroke, please ring 999

Where Home Visits are appropriate and worthwhile

• Terminally ill patients – we have no problems at all seeing those are at most clinical need
• Truly bedbound patients – we have no problems seeing those who are confined to bed
• So poorly would be harmed if moved – we have no problems at all seeing those who are at most clinical need

If you think you may need a Home Visit

We would kindly ask that any patient who is mobile (own legs, using walking aids, wheelchair or scooter) see us in surgery.

If you are poorly and think you need an urgent same day visit, please ring your request through to reception on 01462 453232 before 10.30 a.m. The doctor will telephone you to assess urgency and consider the request for a home visit. Please make every effort to answer this phone call. The doctor will try to ring you twice. If the doctor is unable to obtain details via telephone, a visit will not be undertaken.

If we visit you and feel that your request was inappropriate

If we feel that your visit request was inappropriate, we may inform you so that you may use our services more appropriately in the future. Please do not be offended as we have a duty to use our resources effectively for the safety and benefit of all patients.

Please remember that several patients can be seen in the practice in the time that it takes to make one home visit. There are also better facilities for examining and treating patients at the surgery.

Chaperones 

This organisation is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times and the safety and comfort of everyone is of paramount importance.

All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present for any consultation, examination or procedure where they feel one is required. This chaperone can be a friend or family member. On occasions you may prefer a formal chaperone to be present i.e a trained member of staff.