South Gloucestershire GP survey: survey report

Healthwatch South Gloucestershire found waiting times were consistently being highlighted as a concern, even when the appointment booking system and/or GP surgery was considered efficient.

The majority of respondents said they expected to wait anywhere from one to six weeks for an appointment, with three weeks appearing the norm. Healthwatch South Gloucestershire found that the vast majority of respondents made appointments by telephone, and where available, some also said they used online booking systems. However, online booking systems were said to sometimes be limited. For example, many respondents were only able to gain access to appointments with GPs, not the full range of surgery staff.

Moreover, respondents were not clear on what was considered as being ‘urgent’, which appeared to be compounded by the variety of approaches to triage/assessment and the variation in waiting times being experienced across the district.

Although 25% of respondents reported that seeing a named GP was the most important factor for them, the majority of respondents reported that being seen the same day was key. Healthwatch South Gloucestershire heard a handful of respondents note that long waits for GP services had led them to use Minor Injuries or A&E instead.

Experiences varied enormously in relation to perceived flexibility of GP services to meet customer demands. A number of respondents reported finding their GP surgery being flexible to their needs, however this was often due to the respondent’s ability to be flexible also. Where respondents reported inflexibility from their GP services, Healthwatch South Gloucestershire found that the impact for those people with work or family commitments was evident, with a desire for evening and weekend appointments being frequently requested.