Hedge End Medical Centre - Ratings and reviews
Reviews
-
Review titled Often Impossible to make an appointment after E consult!
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Alan Booth - Posted on 01 May 2024
Despicable almost non existent service!! My wife has tried two successive weeks to book on a Weds @ 11 as advised, however the surgery operate an automatic cut off after telling you to listen for automatic call back message which isn’t ever provided!! You then get cut off and have to redial and join the call Que again! The surgery is totally inefficient and needs a quality assurance investigation by a governing body urgently ! There simply isn’t any justifiable explanation that could be provided, they are simply failing to provide their service contract with the National Health Service! Once you finally get through and then again get told to listen to the automatic call back message, which isn’t ever played, it again cuts you off in a couple of seconds, this isn’t caring it’s just down right rude! Accept your service isn’t adequate for its need and ask for help!! Unfortunately the GP’s have been forced into a glorified call centre where they have succeeded in keeping the surgery empty all day, just to answer the phone and Triage patients! Please realise Econsult will soon be triaged by artificial intelligence computers making the call centre doctor function redundant, as you now longer see any value to personally reading the patient alongside their personal consultation!! Hopefully somebody cares enough to evaluate Hedge End Medical Centre’s service to the community and the efficiency against their cost to the National Health Service! Again accept your failing to provide and get Help urgently.. Hopefully you don’t have to use the same telephone service as we all do!! Regards Alan Booth
Visited April 2024
Hedge End Medical Centre has not yet replied.
-
Review titled Great Service
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Lucy C - Posted on 19 April 2024
I just wanted to leave a positive review about the practice as it's well deserved! I've only ever had to contact them a few times but the reception staff have been nothing but helpful and polite. I've been in touch this week via an e- consult, and they've been nothing but proactive, thorough and supportive. I know I can't name the GP I saw on this review but they were so kind and extremely helpful. I left feeling reassured and I was so impressed with the whole experience. Thank you again to all the staff at Hedge End!
Visited April 2024
Hedge End Medical Centre has not yet replied.
-
Review titled What a sad start to an otherwise exciting journey
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 01 March 2024
I am pregnant for the first time, and whilst we planned for it, I'm very anxious. My pregnancy app told me today that it's time to inform my GP. I called, and it being my first time I didn't know what to say. I said "I tried filling out an e-consult but it didn't seem appropriate, it's my first time so a little unsure of what to do, so I'm calling to report that I'm pregnant" The woman was so rude - literally 0 empathy or compassion - she just rudely said "Right. So what report do you need?". I advised I didn't need a report, I'm just following the guidance I've found online. She said "Well you need to self refer" with an attitude that made me feel like I should have somehow known this already. I was thinking, "oh god, I've done this all wrong" until she said "I need to send you a link". "Oh", I thought. So I did need to call. What on earth was the attitude about then? In my exceptionally hormonal state I then got off the phone and cried - resulting in me missing a meeting at work. Considering you have notices to patients about "treating our staff with kindness" I would implore you to advise your staff to take the same ethos. I am very very much hoping that the next 9 months will be managed away from hedge end medical centre as I will actively avoid from now on (although maybe that was the aim to start with). Usually the staff are lovely - but this lady has let the whole team down. I'm really cross about this mornings call. It was so unnecessary. If you don't like people and have no compassion, don't pick a customer/patient facing role. It really is as simple as that.
Visited March 2024
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 01 March 2024
Dear patient, I am devastated to read of your experience, and it certainly isn't the way our team have been trained, so we would very much like to find out some more information. We record all our calls, so we can find out which member of the team needs additional training. Please could you email your information to hiowicb.hsi-hemcfeedback@nhs.net, and we will investigate. I really hope that this doesn't put you off seeking help from us during your pregnancy, and I again apologise for the way you were spoken to.
-
Review titled Not good enough
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 21 March 2024
I called the surgery on 18.3.24 following an issue with a referral letter I had received in the post. After I had explained a great length to the receptionist what I was calling for, she told me she would ask someone to call me back, here we are three day later and nothing. Called the surgery today and there is nothing noted that I had called - no one knew anything or was aware that I had called - absolutely terrible service - its a good job that its nothing life threating that I was calling about
Visited March 2024
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 22 March 2024
I am so sorry that there was no record of your call. We would be keen to investigate what has gone wrong here, and would appreciate if you could contact our Patient Experience Manager on hiowicb-hsi.hemcfeedback@nhs.net. Thank you.
-
Review titled Appointment Booking is Fundamentally Broken
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 28 November 2023
The appointment booking process at this surgery is fundamentally broken. I appreciate that demand has increased for surgeries but even if demand was low, it would still be way too hard to book an appointment. E-Consult requests can only be submitted in surgery hours (when I'm working). To get an appointment to discuss my asthma I had to submit three E-Consult (they lost the first one, the person on the phone put the wrong info on the second) and then you can't get through on the phone to discuss an appointment time (I tried ten times in one day for the automated message to say they were too busy and cut me off...all whilst at work myself). A review of your processes from a patient perspective is sorely needed to make it much easier. People don't mind waiting for a routine appointment, it's the endless failed attempts to do the simplest things that gets everyone so frustrated.
Visited November 2023
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 01 March 2024
I'm sorry that you have had such a poor experience with our appointment system and eConsult. We are very happy to look into the circumstances around this if you'd like to email the details to us on hiowicb-hsi.hemcfeedback@nhs.net. We do continually review our processes, and you may have seen that we, along with Blackthorn Health Centre, are setting up an Urgent Care Centre in May which should alleviate some of the pressures on the routine side of appointments. We have also recently amended some of the options on our phone system to make it clearer which option to choose, and separates out urgent from routine.
-
Review titled A great practice
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 14 September 2023
I recently moved to this practice from another in Hedge End and I would like to say how nice hemc is compared to my previous practice. The staff are friendly and helpful and it’s been so easy and stress free to book appointments and to use the e consult. So glad I moved to this practice. Thank you!
Visited September 2023
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 28 November 2023
Thank you so much for your feedback. Our staff work so hard and are such a brilliant team, and it's so good to hear that this has also been your experience. We will share your comments with the team!
-
Review titled Efficient, helpful and there when we need them
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Mr D Giles & Mrs L Giles - Posted on 18 August 2023
As a family of four, we have used various services from hedge end medical centre in recent months and been impressed on all occasions. We’ve been able to get appointments when needed, have been supported with thorough and efficient referrals and received friendly accommodating help to help progress those referrals.
Visited August 2023
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 21 August 2023
Dear Mr and Mrs Giles, We would like to thank you for taking the time to feed back to us. We do our best to make our systems as patient-friendly and efficient as possible and it's lovely to hear back that what we are aiming for is happening. Your feedback will be circulated to the team!
-
Review titled Patients First Approach and Excellent Care
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Cassie Holmes - Posted on 25 August 2023
I am very grateful for the care that I received when I called Hedge End Medical Centre on Friday 25th August. Understanding that we were approaching a bank holiday weekend and that there were medical strikes across the NHS, my expectations of care were low which I thought was realistic due to the challenges across the NHS system. However, I received excellent care from the Doctor that called me back, they called me back very quickly and discussed my symptoms and care effectively. I very much appreciated the patient's first approach and the respect the Doctor showed for the direction of care I wanted to take; taking into account not only my symptoms but my family history and how that affected my approach to my health. This was my first time using Hedge End Medical Centre as I’ve recently moved to the area and am usually fit and healthy but I was very impressed with the care I received and feel lucky to live in an area with such an effective GP. Kind regards.
Visited August 2023
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 28 November 2023
Dear Cassie, Thank you so much for the time you've taken to feed this back. This was a time when capacity was under pressure due to the reasons you mention, so it is good to hear that the service you received was patient centred and effective. We really appreciate positive feedback, and share it with the team!
-
Review titled Failing it's patients.
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 22 June 2023
I attended for blood tests two months ago and have yet to be able to secure an appointment for the results. Two appointments have been cancelled, due to staff sickness and they can only offer me an appointment some weeks away on a day that I'm unavailable. No other choice of days or times are available. This is not the first time my family has been let down by this surgery abs I feel they are failing in their duty of care to their patients. I am now looking to register elsewhere.
Visited June 2023
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 26 June 2023
Dear Patient, We are very sorry that you have encountered this problem. With regards to results of investigations, you can get the results by calling us, completing an admin eConsult, or if you have online access to your medical records, by looking up the results. You may already have done this, but if you wish to discuss the result, you should complete an admin eConsult and the request will be assessed for urgency by a clinician and an appropriate appointment offered. If your need is assessed as routine, you will be given a number of options, including accessing appointments at the Hub, or at the Practice. If you have already booked an appointment and we have cancelled this due to sickness we will rebook you. If you cannot make what is offered, we should find you another option - you are welcome to call us and explain this. I'm sorry if this hasn't already been offered. We do also have a complaints procedure should you wish to follow it, available on our website https://www.hedgeendmedicalcentre.co.uk/policies/complaints/ and if you give us your details via this, we can more fully investigate what has gone wrong. Thank you.
-
Review titled Awful
Rated 1 star out of 5
by ian - Posted on 12 January 2024
Attended my yearly asthma clinic with the asthma under control with effective medication. I was then reluctantly persuaded to change this medication for one which was 'more environmentally friendly'. Under this new medication my asthma is much worse and no longer under effectively managed. At my next review I will insist on returning to the old medication.
Visited June 2023
Review titled Hedge End Medical Centre
Replied on 01 March 2024
Dear Ian, I'm sorry to hear that you've had a bad experience with an inhaler. All practices are being encouraged to promote environmentally-friendly inhalers, and most patients will find this a positive change. As with any medication though, there are some patients for whom the new medication isn't suitable. Please don't wait until your next review, please submit an eConsult and we will get you an appointment to discuss this.