PATIENTS WHO DO NOT ATTEND (DNA’s)
We lose between 40-50 appointments each month because patients book appointments then fail to turn up. This is very wasteful of doctor and nurse time, time which could have been used for other patients. There are many reasons for this behaviour including forgetfulness, travel problems and difficulty contacting us by telephone amongst others.
If you cannot keep your appointment please let us know as soon as possible by telephoning 01708 629733, or using our online services.
However, there is a group of patients who persistently fail to turn up for appointments. In future, we shall ask the CCG to remove them from our patient list.
CHAPERONE
A chaperone will be available on request. It is practice policy for trained clinicians of the same gender as our patient to be present as a chaperone upon request.
PUNCTUALITY
Please try to arrive five minutes before your appointment time. If you arrive late, we may not be able to see you. We aim to see the majority of our patients as close to their appointment time as possible and hope you will understand when this is not always the case.
The usual cause of running late is a patient presenting us with more than one problem at a time. Therefore, please let the receptionist or triaging doctor know when booking your appointment if you need to discuss more than one problem so that a longer appointment can be allocated. If you don’t do this, the doctor or nurse may ask you to make another appointment.