Forest hill road surgery phones not answering

[catgirl]

If anyone is going to forest hill road group practice today please ask them to check phone system. I can't get there today but need to speak to them and all the options (enquiries, appointments and prescriptions) are just ringing and ringing with no answer. Very frustrating! Alternatively if anyone has an email address for them would be much appreciated.

[prdarling]

Don't get me started on them...

I have had the same problem where I tried to call to cancel an appointment and was on the

line at great expense for over 5 minutes due to their 0844 super costly system, I eventually got through to appointmnets then it just rang off. This has happened at least three times. I had to go down to the surgery to cancel my appointment which was really annopying but no doubt I would have been in trouble had i just not turned up and i wrote a letter of complaint to their patient service manager as they don't have anyone you can speak to directly and they don;t have an email which is most frustrating.

I got a letter of reply back which basically said their records showed my call was answered in 1 min 17 seconds and i was on the line for x minutes to one of their staff. Err no I wasn't otherwise i wouldn't have had to go down to the surgery in the first place. The letter then went on to say perhaps it would be better if i tried to call outide their busiest time which is 8-8.30am (which is clearly the time that the phone lines should be adequately staffed) which is virtually impossible for me with two school runs, a commute and a job.

I find the whole business most annoying, especially when your call gets answered by their machine and then you sit for ages while it rings and rings and it's costing money, the least you expect is for the damn phone to be answered.

Nothing wrong with their phones. Everything wrong with their staffing

[etta166]

You can change GP surgery. Maybe they would get the message if all their patients start leaving...

[prdarling]

Is a consideration. Their rapid turnover of GPs makes me rather nervous never mind the inability to book or cancel an appointment

[catgirl]

I did get through eventually but Had to try numerous times over the space of a few hours and it was ringing literally 60 or more times each time before I had to give up! Crap!

[sunbob]

When I rang the other morning the system was on 'the surgery is now closed' message, at a time when it was open. Getting an appt lately has been really hard too, ended up booking my 2 little ones in for more than a week's time, if they have actually got something its going to be pretty nasty by then! I think I will have to resort to trying to get in with the duty doctor for an emergency appt.

[crystal7]

Also have had issues trying to get through on the phone to the point where I've been unable to cancel apppointments. However I have never had a problem gettong an appointment to see a Dr for my 2 children I just call at 8 on the day. Much harder to get one for myself though. I also really rate several of the Drs there.

[RachelM]

I actually tried to change GPs because of this ongoing problem. One month when my daughter was unwell several times my phone bill was ?10 higher than usual because of calls to the doctors that were never answered (or only answered after several minutes and then I was hung up on). As every call is auto-answered within one ring you are paying a premium rate just to hear a phone ring out which is intensely annoying.

The doctors are generally great but getting to see them is a total nightmare. I tried to switch to a GPs closer to my home but was told that I am outside their catchment area despite them being my closest doctors! So I'm sticking with Forest Hill Road GPs for now and praying things will improve but not holding my breath.

Sympathies to everyone suffering the same issues!

[Saffron]

Wow, sooo that's frustrating. We used to be with this surgery, and I hated it. Receptionists were rude. HVs and doctors gave us incorrect medical advice, and the waiting times were ridculous. We changed GPs when we moved to SE4. However, I thought NHS guidelines had changed in recent years, to relax the rules on catchment areas?

[Growlybear]

I've been with Forest Hill Road Group Practice for about 35 years now, and have always found that they provide a superb service. Since I was diagnosed with a serious illness in the autumn, I couldn't have been treated better. I've never found it difficult to get through on the phone, whatever time of day I ring, and always manage to speak to someone within a couple of minutes, even at peak times. Although there can be a couple of weeks wait to see a particular doctor, especially the more popular part time GPs, I have always, without exception, been able to see a doctor the same day if I need to. I find the reception staff really sympathetic and helpful, especially the delightful young dark haired man who really has gone out of his way to help me on more than one occasion. I have also found that if I need telephone advice, one of the GPs rings me back promptly. I think it's a brilliant practice and nothing would make me consider changing.

[Polly D]

It's a bit hit and miss in terms of the receptionists. They used to be pretty frustrating but I feel it's improved in the last couple of years - agree the man on reception is particularly helpful.

The GPs are v good, and the nurses are very helpful. Once or twice I've requested a phone appointment and it was brilliant.

At the moment there seems to be quite a wait for an appointment so it must be a really busy time of year. For example, I rang last Weds for my son to be seen (non emergency) and the next appt was this Weds - a whole week later.

Trouble is, if you're ill and really need to get through and can't get down there, and no-one picks up the phone it's incredibly frustrating, not to mention expensive, so maybe it's worth sending a letter to explain just how frustrating it is. Obviously that doesn't help when what what you need there and then is a reassuring voice on the line.

[simonethebeaver]

I am generally a fan but the premium rate phone is deeply annoying and also I think against good practice. I wonder if there's somewhere to complain to about this.

[ABH]

I have been waiting for someone to complain about this, I am thinking of changing too but having been at the practice my whole life I have no clue how to go about this.

I have never once met my actual doctor, every appointment made I have had to wait a week and bit to get the earliest possible appointment, and it is always a different person. (When I was younger I remember same day appointments!)

When told it would be a week and a bit wait I asked what do I do if it's not A&E worthy but I need to see a doctor asap I was told to go to a walk in surgery in Peckenham? and then she put the phone down!

The receptionist are always rude and having to pay for the phone is annoying.

I will write a letter today too, hopefully if enough people write in they may improve.

[prdarling]

It was only a few years ago that you could always get a same-day appointment if you called or pitched up first thing in the morning. I always used to get them for my little boys and the oldest one is only 6. What went wrong???

Whatever they have done it's certainly not working.

It's great that you can get a call from a duty doctor and if you are prepared for the long haul you can actually get seen but it's not the same as an actual appointment.

I did think that surgeries were not going to be allowed to use those 0844 number anymore, but perhaps I misunderstood??

[simonethebeaver]

I've got same day appointments for children recently, and duty doctor phone appointments same day for myself. The phone number is my only real complaint.