To request an urgent appointment for today (Monday to Friday):
When you get in touch, we'll ask what you need help with. We use this information to choose the most appropriate clinician. Urgent appointments may not guarantee you will see your chosen practitioner but the one we feel is most appropriate. You should however, inform us if you feel your need for an appointment is an emergency.
We try to ensure that children and elderley patients are always seen on the same day, this is often a quicker process than obtaining a home visit so please bear this in mind.
To request a routine appointment:
When you get in touch, we'll ask what you need help with. The receptionists are experienced to care navigate and use this information to choose the most suitable Doctor, Nurse or Health Professional to help you.
We may need to get more information from you if you require an emergency appointment, to gauge conditions needing urgent attention but you will be seen within 48 hours.
Appointments are booked into clinics with slots of 10 minutes. If you have more than one condition or if you feel you require more time, please advise the receptionist when booking your appointment.
To cancel your appointmment:
If you are unable to attend your appointment, please let us know as soon as possible. This will enable us to offer the appointment to another patient who needs it. If you fail to notify the practice and do not attend, this will be marked on your records and if you fail to attend three consecutive appointments you may be at risk of being removed from the practice.
There is an option for bookings to be made to arrange an ambulance to transport you to your hospital appointment, for patients with severe medical conditions who cannot travel alone.
This can be booked by phone on 0845 053 9078.
If you require a home visit, please telephone before 10:00am. Please note you will only be entitled to a home visit if you are housebound and unable to get out of bed and this will be prioritised on a case by case basis.
Referrals can be made by your GP to a District Nurse, or a health visitor if you have recently given birth.
As a patient, you are entitled to telephone the practice for medical advice. If a doctor is unavailable one of the receptionists will pass your details on for them to call you back.
What is Care Navigation?
Care Navigation is a tried and tested model of care that improves access to primary care services for patients and reduces GP pressures all in one. It allows front line staff to provide patients with more information about local health and wellbeing services, both within and outside of primary care, in a safe, effective way. It is about offering patients choice and help to access the most appropriate service first which is not always the GP. It means that patients will find it easier to get a GP appointment when they need one.
Care navigators are receptionists and admin staff who have been given specialist training to help them direct patients to the right health professional first time.
For example, when a patient presents with symptoms that would be better dealt with by another service such as a pharmacist or optician, patients can be confidently offered these choices, allowing them to go straight to the service which best meets their health and wellbeing needs.
Definition of Care Navigation
“A person centred approach that uses signposting and information to help primary care patients and their carers move through the health and social care system as smoothly as possible to ensure that unmet needs are met.”
This means helping you navigate your way through the often complex health system by giving you as much information as possible to make your own decision and signposting you to the most appropriate health professional.
Why Care Navigation?
Across East Lancashire we are working hard to make sure that when people need to see a GP, they have access to one quickly and in a way that suits them, be that in person or over the phone.
Sometimes though, the GP isn’t really the best person to see. Patients could be seen and treated quicker by a nurse or a pharmacist for example and in some cases, the GP practice might not be the right place at all for the query. That's where care navigation comes in.
Care navigation supports practices and patients to make the best use of valuable NHS resources.
There are now a number of services currently available for care navigators to signpost to. You can find details of these, and the access criteria, in the documents below.
How does it work?
When a patient contacts the practice for an appointment, the care navigator will ask for a brief outline of the problem so they can identify the patient’s need. This will allow the care navigator to refer to information about services in the practice, other NHS providers and the wider care and support sector. Where appropriate, they will direct the patient to these services
You won’t be asked to divulge any personal or confidential information and you can refuse of course, the option is yours and you will never be refused a GP appointment. Please be assured that if you need to see a GP, you will get to see a GP.
Care navigators will never try to diagnose your problem or offer you clinical advice; this new way of working is about offering you the choice to see other health professionals who will be more appropriate than the GP, and who may often be able to see you quicker and easier.
Their goal is to ensure that patients get the right care at the right time in the right place with the right outcome. For example, when a patient presents with symptoms that would be better dealt with by another service such as a pharmacist or optician, patients can be confidently offered these choices, allowing them to go straight to the service which best meets their health and wellbeing needs.
Please click the link below for the NHS symptom checker and Use the right service information
https://usetherightservice.com/self-care/nhs-symptom-checker/
Please note if you are attending St. Peter's Centre, car parking charges will apply. If you are mobile, there is free car parking available on the TK Maxx car park which is directly across the road (this is for two hours).
Access to St. Peter's Centre can be made via the travellator to the first floor main reception and taking the blue lift to the third floor, alternatively you could take the orange lift from the ground floor. The practice is directly opposite the lifts, once you arrive you can either use the self-check in machine or let one of the receptionists know you have arrived and you will be seated until the GP is ready to see you.
Kiddrow Lane Health Centre has disabled access and is all at ground floor level for ease.
Access to Manchester Road Surgery is a two storey building with disabled access to the ground floor. If you are disabled or unable to use the stairs, please let the receptionist know when making your appointment and we will ensure your appointment is based on the ground floor.
Please note if you are 10 minutes or more late this may result in your appointment having to be re-booked.
Extended Access is a local service for local patients offering evening and Saturday appointments with GPs, Nurses and Health Care Assistants. This is not a walk-in service. These will be delivered by a new provider from April 2022.
The Extended Access Service is available by appointment only. During normal hours your GP practice may book an appointment for you, subject to availability. You can request an appointment outside of working hours by asking for the extended access service.
We run a SMS service which allows you to receive reminders and confirmation of your appointments. If you would like to participate in this, ask the receptionist for consent form to register for this service.
You must notify us of any change of contact details including your address, mobile number and email address.
Please notify the receptionist upon arrival if you require an interpreter to attend with you during your appointment.