Why can I never get a doctors appointment?

[MadWorld74]

.....why on God's earth can I never get a same day appointment with a GP at the Dulwich Medical Centre?

I am off sick with a bad chest and as I am asthmatic I say it is urgent that I get into see a doctor on one of these elusive same day appointments they advertise on their website. I ring day after day; this is day four of trying, at 8.45am as they suggest but never get through because the phone is always engaged. On the rare occassion that I have gotten through I am told by a very dismissive receptionist/telephonist that if it's an emergency that I can 'pop down to A & E'. Now excuse me but it's not an emergency 'yet' but if I am left to get any more sick, it may well be.

Has anyone else been treated like this by the DMC?

You can make appointments in advance (currently they have a wait time of two bloody weeks) but if you need attention now they tell you to ring the NHS Direct number or take a day trip to A & E. I'm bloody outraged. What kind of shit medical service is this?

The Practice Manager Anil Gupta has received a letter of complaint from me this morning. I await to hear their response.

[Jah Lush]

If it's an emergency you're supposed to turn up first thing in the morning and they'll get a doctor to see you as soon as one is available. I've never had to wait too long either. Perhaps if you got up off your arse and got yourself down there you'd get the appointment you want.

[MadWorld74]

thanks for that Jah, you have an incredible bed side manner. You should work for the NHS.

I have already tried that, and have been told that there are no appointments, even when I am physically in the building. What's the point of getting myself out of the house when I am unwell only to be told to go home again and ring tomorrow morning. Maybe you get seen and don't have to wait too long because you are wild eyed and smell of booze from the night before...and the staff are scared of you....after all... you offer up all this personal information about your perpetual state of hangover on this forum, on a regular basis...maybe me being 'lazy' has nothing to do with it.

[Jah Lush]

Now just you listen to me young lady my bedside manner is famed the world over. I thought about working for the NHS but I'm afraid the pay just isn't good enough and so I have relucantly set up my own private practice which has proved very popular to the ladies even though my fees are prohibitively expensive. Hang on. I think I may have mixed up surgeries here. We are talking about the same place aren't we? I'm thinking of the doctors surgery up by the Plough. Hope you get better soon.

[Knomester]

Hi MadWorld74. I had exactly the same problem with them last December and changed doctors because of it. I too had a chest infection and am asthmatic. I called the first morning (took me over 20 minutes to get through) and they said the appointments had run out and that if I called back the next morning at 8.30am I would be seen that day. I duly called and again it took me ages to get through on redial to find they couldn't see me again. By that point I was pretty desperate but in my view that sort of a problem isn't one for A&E and NHS Direct can't prescribe me antibiotics and steroids! So my husband called Forest Hill Road surgery and I was seen within half an hour (even though I wasn't on their books) and transferred to that surgery permanently. I've never not been able to see or speak to a GP on the day I've called. Doesn't help unless you can hcange surgery - something worth looking into?

Get well soon.

[Pickle]

Sorry to hear you guys are having trouble with DMC. I've had to use them quite a lot recently and have had quite the opposite experience, even managing to see someone the same day when I've rung at lunchtime! They have a "duty doctor" who sees people deemed urgent when there aren't any normal appointments left... maybe you need to be more forceful with the receptionist?

[karter]

If you manage to get through Madworld dear, Dr Carla at DMC is great, very thorough.

[jim_the_chin]

I think you're mistaken MW in thinking that GPs are there for sick people. Their systems are set up to deal with the elderly with chronic ilnesses who book regular appointments weeks in advance. Those of us - adult and child - who wake up one morning feeling ill are no longer really catered for.

and FHS is not bad but I still feel I have to justify my near-death status to get seen on the day.

[MadWorld74]

I have an appt this evening at 7pm. Don't see why I should have to write a letter in order to secure one! What else am I meant to do. I go into the centre but there are no appts, I ring non stop but never get through or on the odd occassion I have reached a human...there are no appt left? Dear God.

[MadWorld74]

oh and I forgot to say....once they gave me an appointment for 7pm this evening, meaning that I have to miss out on yet more work...the girl behind the counter had the bloody nerve to say "If you're one minute late for this appointment, it goes against you and we put a black mark type thingy on your record...." Stunned wasn't the word. I know appts are sought after, God knows I've had to literally re enact a scene from a bad day time soap opera to get one, but hang on a minute lady....that takes the right royal piss.

[MadWorld74]

where is the Forest Hill Road surgery?I only live round the bend...went round it along time ago....can't think of where it is?

[Cora]

I really sympathise with you...I think they are a great practice once you get in to see them or if you have children but their appointment system for both doctors and nurses is getting worse.

Maybe they've overstretched their patient numbers?

I think they call it prioritising, which is fine if you are a priority, but if you have a chronic illness or query and are never a priority then you just get shunted along. I have had a couple of occasions where I have needed antibiotics for a common but all the same uncomfortable and draining infection.....after trying to get an appointment with a nurse (2 weeks wait) or doctor I felt much worse, shattered and just really shocked that I was pretty much not being allowed to see my GP.

I don't understand why you can't make an appointment with a GP in advance. I'm assuming it's due to targets (ie with this system everyone gets seen on the day - no waiting). If you're not free (you need to get the kids to school for example?!) to sit down and wait in a queue for 20mins at exactly 8.45 then you've got no chance.

My top tip though would be to ask for a telephone appointment with a Dr - This is usually available and at least then you are talking to a Dr about your concerns - someone who hopefully understands your illness and can make you a priority if necessary.

I hope they resolve this - at least they've got another complaint letter that they can't ignore.

[lard]

If it's just to get antibiotics etc just go to the walk in centre.

New Cross walk in centre

I went once I was the only one there just went straight in. If you phone them in advance they can tell you how many people are in there.

[MadWorld74]

I've had this happen earlier in the year so I dont know what treatment I need. All health check for a start!I have in the past used SELDOC, but again, you really have to be at the morgues door to get an appointment with them!

[paragon]

yawn

[MadWorld74]

I'm going down to the Forest Hill Group Practice tomorrow to get moved over from the DMC. Enough is enough. Thanks people for your info and input.

[matthew123]

It's an almost impossible task to get a same day appointment in the DMC by telephone - I suspect that all same day appointments go to the long line of people who queue up at the DMC for the doors to open rather than answering the phones from 8.45am. The engaged signal you get from 8.45am is most likely the first caller waiting to be answered for 15/20 minutes.

I think they've introduced some evening appointments which is very good, probably from competition at the new Doctors surgery by East Dulwich train station.

I understand DMC have one Doctor on duty who does walk-in "emergency" cases - but they should really reintroduce the old walk-in service with say 1 Doctor to run parallel with the existing appointment only Doctors.

[Tony.London Suburbs]

Sorry to hear about this.

Its "progress" innit...I remember the silly old days when you could easily arrange on the day at most Practices and you often got to speak to a ral-life Human Being as well!

[Wisey]

Having heard such bad things as you've all said from friends about appointments at EDMC, I was surprised when I tried and succeeded in getting an 'emergency' appointment recently.

After phoning at 845am and holding for 20 minutes, as I was apparently "so polite" the woman said despite my problem not sounding like an emergency to her (are these women trained professionals in phone diagnosis?), that I should come down anyway and she'd make sure I got seen. I did and was seen within 20 minutes of arriving.

Whilst I know these receptionists seem to be some of the worst gatekeepers known to man, I was shocked by how rude some of the patients were to them, with one woman virtually blaming them for her turning up half an hour late for her appointment. There were quite a few who had just turned up and if they couldn't be convinced to leave were put into the 'emergency' queue - maybe worth trying next time.

[Ant]

It's terrible trying to get an appointment at the DMC. It wasn't always this bad, but recently it's become ridiculous. I think perhaps Cora is right and they've taken on too many patients. The only thing I've found works is queuing up there in the morning - but that's not going to be an option for everyone.

On the plus side, they're good with appointments for kids and other vulnerable types. I understand why they give priority to such people over me, and would be complaining if they didn't. It's just the degree to which it seems to have gone that seems wrong.

Also: that surgery by the station isn't new, it's just had a fresh lick of paint is all.

[cdonline]

Maybe, it's because they are having to deal with the legions of patients expecting and demanding antibiotics for every little sniffle and cough.

BTW, that is not a pop at anyone with a pre-existing medical condition.

[Strawbs]

I have to say I have had a pretty good time with them to be honest, Ive only been I think 3 times and 2 of those times I was offered an emergency appt that day - 1 of which i was at first refused as there were 'none left' but when I pushed and told them I was asthmatic and needed to see a GP and I would not accept being seen they fit me in that day around 4.30 and today was my 3rd appt which i went for a flu shot, I called up on Tuesday and was seen by Thursday..

When I arrived at 10.15 it wasnt all that full, lots of people seemed to be seeing the nurses like me rather than the GPs..

[katybenno]

DITTO. I go to Mel Grove medical centre whom now won't give you an appointment until the doctor has called you back to assess if you really need to come in!! Which is good I guess in a way but you can't just get an appointment, unless you are on deaths door.

Nice heh?

Oh and another issue - they never call you back when they say they will!

[MadWorld74]

paragon....do you have something to say? No of course. You're just being witty. Silly me. As for queing up outside in the morning, when you've got breathing probs and it's pissing down and cold, it isn't an option, not for me anyway.

[paragon]

yawn accompanied by violins