Norton Medical Centre
Billingham Road, Norton, Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland, TS20 2UZContact details and opening times
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Reviews
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Review titled Not good enough.
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Jeremy Crompton - Posted on 31 May 2023
For 4 months i have been trying to get an appointment about my knee. I had a acl, mcl and meniscus surgery 12 years ago and suffer on a dailiy basis. I have spoken to other medical people and they have said it needs looking at but this can not be done as you cannot get an appointment. I fully understand that alot are of people like my self who do not get seen 9r even get to talk to a doctor. I also suffer from really bad indigestion that makes me violently sick. To the point that i get blood spots on my face. I have been fobbed off so many times, told to do an econstult and that says you need to talk to a doctor . The excuse of not enough doctors is a joke. My girlfriend gets appointments all the time in Middlesbrough. Something seriously needs to be done to make sure patients are seen as there are alot of people who's medical needs are not being met.
Visited May 2023
Review titled Norton Medical Centre
Replied on 08 December 2023
Dear Mr Crompton Thank you for your feedback. Please accept our apologies for the frustration you have experienced. We have listened to problems that our patients have experienced with regard to telephone waiting times and appointment availability and we have made two major changes in the past eight months, which we hope will work together to improve the service 1. A new Cloud based telephone system - with a call back facility. 50 patients have access to telephone lines. Patients 1 - 8 remain in queue, patients 9 - 50 have the option to leave their name to be called back by a Receptionist, rather than waiting in a queue. 2. In September the Practice updated the existing appointment system to a Modern General Practice Access (MGPA) model. This has changed the way patients can access appointments with either a Doctor or Advanced Clinical Practitioner. Instead of patients trying to get through to our Reception Team at 8.30am by telephone or by attending the surgery in order to book an appointment, we are asking our patients to submit an eConsultation online via our website nortonmedicalcentre.nhs.uk. This information will then be sent to a Triage Team within the Practice consisting of a Clinician and at least two Receptionists. The GP will look through the information provided by the patient and advise the Receptionist who they would be best seen by, and in what timeframe. This will ensure that our patients are seen by the correct person and should reduce the amount of unnecessary appointments. If you do not have access to the internet, please do not worry. A family member or friend can submit an eConsultation for you on your behalf. If you are still having difficulty, please contact a member of our Reception Team. Why we made these changes: • To provide a fair and equal service to all patients • Ensure consultations are booked in the correct timescales based on clinical need • Improve access for all patients and reduce waiting times on the telephone • Provide care to patients who have a medical problem which needs to be reviewed on the same day • Facilitate 'continuity of care' by having sufficient appointments availabelt to allow patients to be booked in advance twith the clinician of their choice where appropriate and available • Manage demand and improve efficiency • Reduce the number of patients who fail to attend appointments Call statistics now show: July 12036 telephone calls were received, compared to 6808 calls received in October, with an average call waiting time of 7 mins Yours sincerely Cath Milburn General Manager