Appointments

Appointments can be made by telephoning the surgery from 8am - 1pm and 2pm - 6pm or calling in person at the surgery. If a doctor of your choice is not available you will offered the earliest possible alternative.

On the day appointments are also available.  Patients are asked to call the surgery between 8am and 10pm to book an urgent appointment.

How Long Are Appointment Slots?

Our normal appointment slots are 12 minutes long. however some things require longer appointments and you will be advised of this at the time of booking. If you feel you need an appointment that is longer or shorter than the designated 12 minute slots, please would you advise the receptionist when booking your appointment and your consultation time will be adjusted accordingly.  Only one ailment is discussed within a 12 minute appointment.  1 ailment 1 appointment.

Extended Hours our practice has dedicated appointment slots for our patients to see a doctor at Dewsbury Health Centre. Please tell our reception staff if you would like to book into an appointment at these times.

Evenings, Monday to Friday and Weekends we are part of a scheme which is funded by the 27 practices in North Kirklees where patients from all the practices are able to book an appointment to see a doctor (male or female) at Dewsbury Health Centre at the times below. This is on a first come first served basis and appointments can be booked in advance.  Please tell our reception staff if one of these slots would suit you better.

UNATTENDED APPOINTMENTS

We have an increasing number of appointments being booked and not attended by patients. This is a waste of valuable clinical time and NHS resource. It is also unfair to other patients who could be using the appointments.

We have therefore introduced a practice policy for any patients that do not attend for 3 appointments within a rolling 12 month period will be removed from our practice list and will need to register at another practice.

Appointments can be cancelled 24 hours a day 365 days a year by

• Replying “cancel” to the text you receive confirming your appointment
• Cancel using online services or NHS App

Alternatively, please phone the practice to cancel appointments during telephone opening hours Monday to Friday 8am – 1pm and 2pm – 6.30pm.

Appointments cancelled within 30 minutes of the appointment will be marked as not attended as they are unable to re-booked.

Home Visits

Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible. In this respect, if you do need a home visit, you can help us by calling reception before 12:00pm.

You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. Your GP will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it and will also decide how urgently a visit is needed. Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.

When We Are Closed

At any over the weekend and Monday to Friday - between 6.30pm and 8.00am

For urgent Medical Treatment

For Urgent Medication

For Urgent Medical Advice

Please phone 111 

Calls are free from both landlines and mobile phones.

More details are available on the NHS111 Website

Out-of-hours services are generally busy so please think carefully before asking to see a doctor and only do so if you genuinely cannot wait until the surgery re-opens.

In a genuine emergency you should call 999. Chest pains and / or shortness of breath constitute an emergency.  

Evening and weekend appointments now available

Patients can now see a local GP for routine appointments on weekday evenings and at weekends.

Pre-bookable and on-the-day appointments are available between 6.30pm and 9.30pm each weekday, with additional slots available on Saturdays from 9am and 4pm and Sundays 9am and 1pm.

The scheme starts in August 2018 when evening and weekend appointments will be available for any patient registered with a GP in North Kirklees.  The appointments will be available in Dewsbury Health Centre. 

How to book an evening or weekend appointment

There are ‘pre-bookable’ and ‘on-the-day’ appointments which can be accessed through your own GP practice, or by calling the free NHS 111 phone line out of normal working hours.

Telephone Advice

If you have a question for one of the Doctors or nurses that does not require a face to face or telephone consultation we do have an electronic message system which we check after morning surgery and during afternoon surgery, we aim to answer all the queries that have come in at that time and someone will ring you back with an answer / advice.

Some extentions to sick notes can be done via a message, but we need information of the dates required.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)

Any request for a first Fit note, you will be asked to see a GP

GP EXTENDED ACCESS

Evening and weekend appointments now available

Patients can now see a local GP for routine appointments on weekday evenings and at weekends.

Pre-bookable and on-the-day appointments are available between 6.30pm and 9.30pm each weekday, with additional slots available on Saturdays from 9am and 4pm and Sundays 9am and 1pm.

The scheme started in August when evening and weekend appointments will be available for any patient registered with a GP in North Kirklees.  The appointments will be available in Dewsbury Health Centre. 

How to book an evening or weekend appointment

There are ‘pre-bookable’ and ‘on-the-day’ appointments which can be accessed through your own GP practice, or by calling the free NHS 111 phone line out of normal working hours.