Balfour Medical Centre - Ratings and reviews
Reviews
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Review titled Excellent surgery
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Kate Blake - Posted on 11 April 2024
Always a super high level of care by all clinicians & admin staff at this surgery. All go above & beyond. Like any Drs you have to ring first thing for an appointment, but it’s rare that I haven’t been able to get one the same day. Never any rush when you have an appointment, the medical team there are always very thorough. At our appointment today we saw the clinician & the Dr to make sure that the best possible treatment was being offered for my daughter. Keep doing a great job Balfour Medical Centre!
Visited April 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Awful telephone system
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 29 February 2024
I have called every morning at 8am to speak to a Dr regarding my medication. Every morning I am waiting to get through for 30 minutes only to be disconnected by an awful automated system. Been doing this since Monday, it’s now Thursday and still not spoken to a receptionist let alone a Doctor. Utterly disgraceful and a waste of tax payers money. Please please update this awful automated telephone system, it isn’t working. I have generally had good experiences with this surgery but a couple of the receptionists need to turn the attitude down a notch.
Visited February 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Locum disagreed with information on NHS website
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 09 February 2024
Submitted econsult for common menopause symptom which is easily treatable but would make a massive difference to my life, (currently waiting to be seen by HRT clinic but has a minimum 36 week wait for initial appointment!) Received text saying I needed to book telephone appointment! Locum GP said cream would interfere with HRT treatment, (I have at least another 5 months to go just to be seen). The cream doesn't interfere with HRT at all as is a 'local' cream. I mentioned it says this on NHS website but Locum insisted this must be wrong! Locum then said they would consult with colleague, (so they have no knowledge of a major life event that affects 50% of population) and would call me back. 1 hour+ later they called back to say they wouldn't prescribe treatment, and I would need to get a second opinion when I said I was disappointed with their response. I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall and slowly going mad, not only am I suffering physically and mentally but I'm battling with my local practice it feels like. I've been with them 26 years and I've noticed a decline in service. They just want you to go away!
Visited February 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Receptionist Practices Need Overhaul
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 27 April 2023
The receptionists never answer the phones but you can’t get an appointment any other way apart from econsult. Every time I’ve been in the surgery they do not answer phones, it’s not that the line is busy, it’s that they aren’t doing their job. If you can only make an appointment by calling the phone lines need to be open all day. Ineffective administration is poorly impacting patients health and it needs to change. I’ve been calling for over a week for a telephone appointment. Doesn’t matter what time of the day, I’m not successful. It shouldn’t be impossible to get an appointment. If it’s something serious it won’t be picked up in time.
Visited April 2023
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Very bad receptionist
Rated 3 stars out of 5
by Ola - Posted on 29 March 2023
Getting an appointment in the morning is almost impossible to see a doctor because you will be on the phone for over thirty minutes only for someone to pick up the phone and practically tell you to be sensible and go to A and E. I called the surgery on the 23rd of March to see the doctor and I was told the she will call me back later in the day even though I told the receptionist that it was an emergency. I later spoke to the doctor who agreed with me it was an emergency and she promised to send an order out for me to have an ultrasound and do some blood test. When I was picking the form for the blood test, I was told the request for my ultrasound has been sent and I should receive a call asap. I called on the 28th of march to follow. Up on the result 0f my test and to notify the surgery that nobody has called me pertaining to the ultra sound. I spoke to a receptionist who was blatantly rude and told me that I should have used my common sense to go to accident and emergency. I tried to explain to her that I felt it would be a waste of NHS resources and time since I have started dealing with my G.P. But she does not want to hear any of it and before I could say anything, she dropped the phone on me. I went to the surgery straight away and she still told me that my face that she thinks I was been stupid nd that was why she dropped the call. A gentleman later came to attend to me nd who in 2minutes was able to explain to me and apologize. The receptionist does not have any empathy and does not have a quality of a care giver and does not understand what it is like been in pain or when you are afraid for your life or scared of any symptoms deteriorating. I think the receptionists employ for a surgery should understand this is not picking the inquiry phone of an insurance or a mobile telephone company. Patients need to be spoken to with empathy and given reassurance that everything will be fine and not shout them down and insist they must listen to you even though they are trying to explain their condition to you. Thanks and God bless.
Visited March 2023
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Bad practice
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 09 February 2023
Been with the surgery for more that 15 years with good Doctors and patients care. But lately I think the receptionists have been changed is now very difficult to get any appointment either pre booked or on the day. You can be on call for 30 mins from 8:00am and at the end the call can be dropped at the other end or be told that no more appointment. I have been on this for more than 3 weeks now. Despite that my appointment supposed to be for a followed up treatment. I think the new receptionists are so lazy to pick calls or schedule appointments for patients. Despite telling them your situation they have no empathy or compassion they can sometimes be rude or careless about the situation. They do direct me to e consult for a follow up appointment. This shows how incompetent they are. I think they need to be given good orientation of how to deal with patients. Doctors at the practice do have good relationships with the patients but these new receptionists are making patients to give the surgery a very bad review. They do not understand that a follow up treatment is important. They need to call them to order They claimed to be fully booked but when you get to the surgery you can hardly see up to 3 people at any time and the doors to the doctors offices are opened with no patient in the room. I think the surgery is not effective and efficient as a result of the incompetent receptionists
Visited January 2023
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.