As a practice, we are continually reviewing our processes, in order to ensure we are providing the best patient care. We recognise that over the last few years, starting at the time of/since the pandemic, our access has become heavily weighted towards ‘on the day access’, to the detriment of routine availability. The longer waits for routine appointments has resulted (understandably) in less appropriate use of our same day access and poorer continuity of care. With that in mind, and after careful discussion, we intend to implement changes which we hope will have the following intended consequences:
- Improved capacity of routine and face-to-face appointments, with shorter waiting times;
- More efficient use of the emergency ‘same day appointments’, to improve access to those with genuine need;
- Better continuity of care-improving follow up with one clinician;
- Improved collaborative working between our Broadstone and Merley sites;
- Better equality of appointment accessibility;
- Better use of our Allied Health Professionals - such as our musculoskeletal (MSK) practitioners, direct-access physiotherapists, in-house pharmacist and pharmacy team, mental health practitioners, counsellors and social prescribers;
- Improved resilience in our system, to cope with unforeseen staff absence.
To this effect, from mid-August, we will be operating a central Harvey Practice phone line. Your call may be answered by a member of staff at the Broadstone OR Merley site, but aiming to quickly direct you to the most suitable help you need. For patients with a problem requiring an urgent, same day clinical assessment, calls will be dealt with by a triaging clinician who may be taking calls from the Broadstone OR Merley site. Where a face-to-face assessment is deemed clinically urgent for the same day, patients may be asked to attend either site, even if is not their ‘usual’ surgery. This will follow the start of our drive to use Pharmacy First, where 7 common conditions will be signposted to the pharmacy in the first instance. When this leads to a reduced requirement for same day telephone triage, we will start increasing our proportion of routine appointments. |
Steps 2 Wellbeing is an NHS IAPT mental health service for adults living in Dorset and Southampton. It provides a range of low and high intensity treatments for common mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, stress and PTSD. The service also offers support for people living with long term health conditions. Patients can refer themselves to the service via our website at www.steps2wellbeing.com or they can be referred through their GP or any health care provider. |