The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery - Ratings and reviews
Reviews
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Review titled Poor communication
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 03 April 2024
Been trying to contact The Guildhall & Barrow Surgery for 3 days via emails and phone with no answer or response (I’ve called so many times to be cut off by the new automated phone system )👍 finally get in contact for them to say after 5:30 it’s emergency only I replied could someone at least check my email id sent- to be told it can take up to a week for a response I then went on to explain the urgency of needing assistance to be told sorry this is emergency phone line now and we can’t help call back tomorrow 👌🏻 I understand that the lady answered the phone and followed her policy and she is of no fault - also she was pleasant enough, but I’m in a critical situation and the service was very poor this potentially will have a dramatic impact on my life and there was no consideration whatsoever. The practice in my opinion has gone down hill dramatically in the last year. I honestly felt I was palmed off with no actual consideration to what I’d explained yes not a medical emergency but I can assure you the impact this poor communication is going to have on my life it’s huge so for my situation it’s most definitely an emergency I’m actually shocked by this negligence of my wellbeing. I will be taking this a lot further with GMC after legal advice has been received. Sadly it’s been too poor for me to brush aside. Thanks.
Visited April 2024
The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery has not yet replied.
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Review titled Great Service
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 03 April 2024
After becoming unwell after the Easter bank holiday, I contacted the surgery on Tuesday morning, preparing myself for a long wait. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly my call was answered and how understanding the receptionist was. I obtained a face to face appointment with a doctor that day, who quickly diagnosed the issue and provided a prescription straight away. The service I received was excellent, with very little waiting and very helpful and pleasant staff. I would recommend this service 👍
Visited April 2024
The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery has not yet replied.
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Review titled Gone downhill rapidly
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 26 April 2024
I have been with this practice for many years, apart from having an excellent Doctor and wonderful health care assistant the rest have gone downhill rapidly in the past few years. I refer to Guildhall. I am not at all happy with the control the receptionists have over if you can see a Doctor, do they have medical training to establish my needs - No I don't think so. When having an early appointment 8.30 a.m. cannot get in as door is locked - why? Why is it so difficult to get an appointment - when you press the urgency - suddenly an appointment becomes available what is going on. I guess the receptionists are only doing as they are told. What was wrong with the old system of booking an appointment without getting the third degree. Why don't you make booking online a possibility makes a lot of sense.The phone system is very frustrating, I watched the phones ringing and they were not being answered, in fact two of the staff were so busy dressing each others hair!!!! By this time there were 10 people waiting to book in and the automatic system as usual was not working. In conclusion what is happening to what was a splendid practice, it really needs looking closely at. How about a patient survey to find out what is wrong with your services, of course if no name is required you will get honest answers. By the way I cannot fault Barrow at all and make sure that I attend there and not Guildhall. It would be very polite to receive an answer to the reviews. I note that you do not answer many reviews - why. Sending an e mail why can't they be answered same day. This really should be happening.
Visited April 2024
The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery has not yet replied.
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Review titled Upsetting and frustrating
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 15 February 2024
I have phoned this practice 7 times in the past three weeks and the quickest the phone has been answered was 29 minutes. Once I waited 54 minutes. On two occasions I gave up. You don’t get test results reviewed by your own GP, it seems to be a lottery who looks at them… doctors who haven’t met you…and decides what happens next. My treatment has suffered because of this. If you do need to see a GP you have to go into surgery to book an appointment as phone goes unanswered. Receptionists then make a judgement on when they think you should see a GP….that can be up to a month away if in their opinion your issue is not a serious one. This invariably means the patient having to explain more than they wish to in an open reception area. This attempt to signpost patients to the most appropriate healthcare worker is clumsy and misplaced. Whilst the surgery may think it benefits them and cuts the amount of patients seeing actual GP’s (in favour of being diverted to nurse practitioners or the like) it is not the role of receptionists to make this decision. Patients do know when and why they need to see a GP, if they are in any doubt they know to approach a receptionist for guidance. They shouldn’t have to fight and justify in public, describing private and intimate details which seems to be happening more and more in this practice. It all feels very strange here- as though the consideration for the patient as an individual has been sidelined in the interests of getting as much done in as little time as possible regardless of whether or not it suits the needs of the patient.
Visited February 2024
The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery has not yet replied.
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Review titled Appointment
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 04 January 2024
Diabolical service extremely difficult to get an appointment to actually see a doctor would not recommend to anyone
Visited January 2024
Review titled The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery
Replied on 04 January 2024
Dear Anonymous, Thank you for your feedback. It is very uncommon for us to receive comments like this regarding access to our services, and our latest annual feedback survey suggests that patient satisfaction with our appointment availability exceeds the national average. To ensure we fully understand why you feel you have been unable to access our service, please could you contact us at gbs.feedback@nhs.net with more information? We would like to offer our support in resolving this matter. Kind regards The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery
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Review titled Expensive and disappointing service
Rated 3 stars out of 5
by Kevin Cawser - Posted on 12 August 2023
Contacted the surgery via e mail to ask about vaccinations for travel abroad. Gave me a number which i rang and booked an appointment. When i went to the pharmacy in the surgery they said it was at the neighbouring pharmacy in the same building. We went there and had 4 vaccinations each at a cost of £550. Subsequently we discovered 3 of the 4 vaccinations are free via the doctor. Turns out the number they gave us was for the partner pharmacy in Barrow, a nearby village! At no point were we told this by the surgery or the pharmacy who booked us in for the appointment. Response from surgery when i contacted totally unsatisfactory as we we weren't aware of the procedure or the correct venue. Easily avoided with a more joined up system and clearer information. Would appreciate an explanation ad an apology.
Visited August 2023
The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery has not yet replied.
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Review titled Opening hours
Rated 3 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 19 December 2022
Second time I’ve attended the surgery after checking the opening hours on their website and on Google - opens at 8.30 not 8am. A little annoying when you need to speak to some one face to face and then find you can’t get in.
Visited December 2022
Review titled The Guildhall and Barrow Surgery
Replied on 20 December 2022
Thank you for your comments Anonymous. The reception at our main branch in Bury St Edmunds does open at 8.00am, but the main accessible entrance via the Pharmacy does not open until 8.30am due to their opening hours. There are however two other entrances which are available to anyone who wishes to gain entry pre 8.30am, one with an intercom and one with a doorbell to gain the attention of staff. These have been in place for a number of years, and normally work very successfully for those who use them. However, from your comments, it seems that we have not made the availability of these options clear enough to everyone who visits us, and we will endeavour to rectify this moving forward. Thank you for highlighting this to us. If choosing to visit us before 8.30am, please consider that this is the busiest time of the day for our Reception Team who are trying to answer as many incoming calls as possible. It is for this reason that our clinics do not start until after 8.30am; to allow the team to focus on responding to those acute requests. So please bear with them if they take a little longer than usual to respond to your request to gain entry. Kind regards The Guildhall & Barrow Surgery