Ledbury Health Partnership - Ratings and reviews
Reviews
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Review titled caring experience from receptionist
Rated 4 stars out of 5
by Valerie - Posted on 17 February 2024
Last Thursday 15th Febuary I called at the surgery with an elderly lady in my car, who needed to see a doctor. The patient was in too much pain to walk into the reception so I asked the receptionist to step outside the door and speak to the lady in my car. The receptionist came to the car and dealt professionally but with such a caring manner with the patient and organised an appointment with a G.P. Please thank the receptionist for her kindness. It made such difference to us both.
Visited February 2024
Ledbury Health Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled Shambles
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Philip Manns - Posted on 18 September 2023
l have been having high blood pressure for six months with various calls to surgery and calls from pharmacists only to be told l need to see a GP face to face still waiting after 12 day, not acceptable rang today only to be told ring next day
Visited September 2023
Ledbury Health Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled No service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 26 May 2023
This practice is barely operating. They are so short staffed there is always a very long queue on the phone and the voicemail says they can only cope with urgent medical queries due to staffing. They do not respond to emails. They tell you they will write you a prescription but when you go to the pharmacy there is no prescription so you have to try and get back in touch with the practice. My husband was told by the hospital after his scam he would hear from the gp as he has fatty liver disease but 4 months later we are still waiting to hear. I've been seen by a nurse before who told me to book an appointment with the gp following her examination. When I tried to book the appointment the receptionist refused to give me anything other than a telephone appointment. The gp did call me but said it was a waste of time as she couldn't examine me over the phone. A waste of her time and mine. This practice could improve with training for reception staff All staff to do what they say they will do. Simple customer service basics really.
Visited May 2023
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 30 May 2023
Dear Patient, I am sorry that you have had a bad experience with your prescription; sometimes there is a delay in the prescription being signed after you have been seen. Our phone message changes depending on the staffing that we have on the day. When we have a shortage of staff due to illness combined with planned annual leave, or when it is the day before or after a bank holiday, it is far better to manage patient expectations and offer an 'urgent' service only so that all patients who need medical attention on the day are assured of it. These days in particular are always very busy, so and we aim to be flexible so that we can revert to a regular service when we are better staffed, which is often. I am sorry that your husband has been waiting for a call from the GP. The hospitals are very good at raising patient expectations by promising them something from the GP, without telling us that they have done this. I am happy to feed this back to the hospital if you can let me know details of the department and the member of hospital staff who made the promise. Patients have been promised all sorts of things by the hospitals: regular dressings appointments, follow up visit/appointment from the GP, medication to be issued immediately etc, but we cannot always provide this in the time frame promised by the hospital due to lack of capacity. We do not routinely provide a face to face appointment for patients as the GPs and the ACPs prefer to speak to a patient first, then arrange for them to be seen if they need to be seen. If a mistake was made in booking your appointment as a call, could you let me know your name and number so that we can listen to the call and use to check how our receptionist colleague managed the call. As you say, this is customer service, so if it has failed in your case, we need to know how to improve it. If you would like to contact me directly then please do; I think that it is probably better to discuss things face to face than enter them anonymously on a website. Best wishes Catherine Simonini Practice Manager catherine.simonini@nhs.net
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Review titled Terrible service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Roger brace - Posted on 02 May 2023
spoke to doctor by phone he said I needed to be seen in person receptionist would ring later that day and book me an appointment this never happened I rang to find out why receptionist was extremely rude and told me I would have to go through the whole process again even though I had already spoken to a doctor I tried to explain this but she said she was putting the phone down on me disgusting way to treat vulnerable patients in pain
Visited April 2023
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 03 May 2023
Dear Mr Brace, I am sorry that you were not called back on the day; this instruction was not given clearly to the Reception team by the clinician who spoke to you. I have called you and I have apologized for the difficulty you had in booking a face to face appointment and for the way you were spoken to by the receptionist; I understand your frustration. I was able to book you an appointment with a GP on the day after you wrote to complain and you have now been seen by that GP. I trust that you are pleased with this later outcome. Best wishes Catherine Simonini Practice Manager
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Review titled Great Practice
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Mra, Patricia Wilkin M.B.E. - Posted on 10 February 2023
Over the last two weeks of November 22, I attended nd had contact with several different doctors of the Practice. I received excellent care and attntion on all occaisions. My first contact via telephone I was put on aiting list, but called back shortly and received good advice etc. I have no problems with this Practice and have no difficulty recommending this service to anyone. Thank you for your care.
Visited November 2022
Ledbury Health Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled Time and resources wasted by appointment system
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 12 October 2022
If I phone I join a long queue, so won't use a mobile for fear of being cut off. At 8am today the queue was aready 19, and I waited an hour for an answer. The "call-back" option may not get you a response for several hours and if you can't pick up immediately you lose your place and you can be instantly disconnected when you do. So I find I have to drive to the surgery for 8am stand in reception and wait. If there is nobody at the front desk back-office staff in plain sight have ignored me for long periods. If reception can't give me an appointment, I'm told to phone again at 8am the next day. If they can, it is likely to be well ahead, maybe weeks, often only for a phone consultation with no indication of time, a problem when I am not constantly available. If I missed that call, I'd be back to square one again. If having spoken to the doctor he wants to see me, I'm back on the appointment merry-go-round again. Never mind how annoying this is for patients, I wonder how much practice time is squandered this way. Why can't we book initial non-urgent phone consultations online? A good algorithm could filter urgent from non-urgent. A doctor could then decide if we need to be phoned or seen in person and pass us directly to a designated appointment secretary. Online booking works in the hospitality industry, so why can't it be used at Lhp?
Visited October 2022
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 14 October 2022
Dear Patient, Thank you for your comments; we are grateful for all feedback. We have considered the type of system that you refer to but as you may be aware, the booking of most appointments is not straightforward, and it requires human input. Questions need to be asked; people who ask to speak to a GP may not need to speak to a GP; a differently qualified person might be able to deal with their issue more promptly based on more specific experience and training for that patient's need. We have been given very clear feedback from patients that they would not like an automated system, so we are unlikely to implement one. We are going to trial offering the ability to book more appointments online; these will only be simple appointments with the nursing team, for example smear tests, asthma reviews, blood tests. It would be great if you would join our Patient Participation Group; the first meeting of the new group is on the 26th October at 6pm here in the main Practice building; in that way you can work with us to improve our service wherever possible. Best wishes Catherine Simonini Practice Manager catherine.simonini@nhs.net
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Review titled Utterly impossible to see anyone or get through on the phone
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 23 September 2022
Can't see a doctor, can't get through by phone, emails not answered, can't get repeat prescrciptions. Virtually impossible to get any medical attention at all.
Visited September 2022
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 14 October 2022
Dear Patient, If you would like to contact me to discuss the problems that you have faced, I would be happy to help; please see my email address below. Can you let me know which email address you have used to contact the Practice? It is highly unusual that emails would not be answered, and we would never refuse to issue repeat prescriptions if they were clinically indicated and if they were due. Best wishes Catherine Simonini Practice Manager catherine.simonini@nhs.net
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Review titled Worst practice ever encountered so far
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 08 September 2022
Having lived in over 7 counties and 10+ towns, my wife and I have a fair understanding of what a GP surgery should operate like and this isn't it. Getting to see a GP is virtually impossible and the best you can expect is maybe a phone consultation on the day that your allocated GP is at work as most, if not all, are part time so, you'd better hope that your illness coincides with when they're in. It takes an age to get through to reception and most times we give up - don't be surprised to hear that you're caller number 29 and will have a 30 min+ wait - hopeless! You can't book a date and time to see a GP like the majority of other practices so you'll need an hour spare to sit on the phone in a queue to speak to somebody first and then the call back will be on a particular day to suit them but with no time-slot given so, you might be at work and then have a call any time during that day when you're perhaps in the middle of a meeting or in an open office which is totally inconvenient. The service is totally inadequate, not fit for purpose by any means and needs improving. The town's population is growing with more new houses being built by the week meaning more patients and this level of service is no longer acceptable to the people of Ledbury. Improvements need to come fast and/or a new surgery built urgently that is run properly. If you are new to Ledbury and haven't moved far, our advice would be to stick with your current GP if you can and don't change to Ledbury Health Partnership. Speaking to others in the town, their experiences are much the same or worse so, this is not an isolated case. GP's need to see patients face to face more - hospital doctors do, dentists do and so do opticians - no more excuses - people need to be seen. If it's a matter of available time, then employ more doctors and/or work more hours if staff are on low part-time hours. During the middle of the worst stage of the Covid pandemic, our previous surgeries saw people more than this practice is now. If other surgeries can do a better job, why not this one?
Visited September 2022
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 14 October 2022
Dear Patient, I am sorry that you have had cause to complain, and I wonder if you know of our Complaints Procedure? I am the Practice Manger and part of my job is to deal with complaints. I am happy to meet you to speak about the issues that you mention in your review above. You may not be aware, but we changed our appointment booking procedure in August; it is now possible to book appointments in advance with your GP, and they are happy to see patient face to face if that is required. We would love to employ more GPs, but unfortunately like many Practices throughout the country, we have unfilled vacancies due to the reduction in the number of GPs seeking work. We would love you to join our Patient Participation Group so that you can work together with us to improve the service. The next meeting is on the 26th October at 6pm here at the Practice. Best wishes Catherine Simonini Practice Manager catherine.simonini@nhs.net Best wishes Catherine
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Review titled A bit neglected
Rated 3 stars out of 5
by Richard Yorke. - Posted on 15 November 2022
Sorry to waste your time. I lost my wife 3+ years ago and from the inception of her illness witnessed the progressive decline in GP healthcare in Ledbury. It is no place to grow old now. I am very aware of your problems and try to keep out of your way, but NHS themselves constantly advise ‘consult your GP’. If only it was that simple. At 82 I don’t expect to be fully fit and bear that in mind. A blood test now and again is all I ask for with some justification. That doesn’t take any GP time. Tests I have had thankfully have been negative , yet I continue to have diabetic symptoms including chronic fatigue which is the hardest to live with. I live alone and strive to remain independent. Something reassuring could perhaps save the NHS money. Regards R Yorke
Visited August 2022
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 16 November 2022
Dear Mr Yorke, I am sorry that you feel a bit neglected. I have just spoken to you by phone and offered you an appointment tomorrow with a GP, which you have accepted. I do hope that he is able to help you. Best wishe Catherine Simonini Practice Manager
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Review titled Dreadful Service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 20 April 2022
I have been unable to see an actual GP for myself or my children for months. GP's only work select days and you are asked to make appointments only on days your GP is working as if illness respects GP's diaries. I have been told to go privately by the practice for one of my children which I can't afford. Prescriptions have been sent to the pharmacy without telling me while I wait for a call back to tell me whether we are getting a prescription which never comes. Or they don't get sent at all and I have to keep calling to see what is happening. The reception team add tasks to GP's lists which GP's don't always action and so you are left in limbo waiting for contact that may or ma not come. Medication is prescribed over the phone without ever seeing the patient. I don't trust the advice we are given anymore because we have ongoing issues that have yet to be seen by a GP or treated successfully. I feel like health conditions are left to get worse because the GP's will not see us so we end up going to minor injuries when infections get too bad or develop into more serious things. I just want trustworthy medical advice and treatment for my children but can't afford to go privately.
Visited April 2022
Review titled Ledbury Health Partnership
Replied on 14 October 2022
Dear Patient, I am sorry for the late response to your feedback, but I have only just been given access to this website. If you would like to contact me to discuss your comments, I would be happy to try to help. Best wishes Catherine Simonini Practice Manager catherine.simonini@nhs.net