James Street Group Practice

Receptionist phone diagnosis delayed proper care

The reception staff should not make medical assessments over the phone and use these to decline appointment requests. I'm relieved I followed my instincts and sought alternative advice, which led to contacting the out-of-hours service and attending the emergency department where my child received appropriate care.

Helpful and understanding during blood tests

The phlebotomist was excellent and demonstrated both helpfulness and understanding throughout the appointment.

Appointment delays and dismissive reception staff

Following a significant surgical procedure to address a serious health condition, I felt that the post-operative care and support provided by this practice was inadequate. There was a considerable delay of over a month before I could secure an appointment with a clinician following my discharge from hospital. I experienced difficulties obtaining pain management and found the process of arranging to see a clinician to address this to be frustrating. When appointments did occur, I encountered substantial waiting times that extended well beyond the scheduled slot. Following consultations, prescriptions appeared to require additional approval from a third party before being dispensed, which added further complexity to the process. I also found interactions with reception staff to be challenging, as I felt they did not fully engage with what I was communicating and would interrupt rather than listen to my concerns. Based on my overall experience with this practice, I have found it to fall significantly short of the standard I would expect. Once I am able to access care elsewhere, I intend to register with a different surgery, as I believe this arrangement has not served my needs adequately.

Early morning queues make booking difficult

It's quite frustrating really, as you need to arrive early in the morning if you want to secure an appointment, and trying to book one over the phone is equally challenging. It would be preferable if the booking process worked the way it used to, where you could simply call and request an appointment for a week ahead and have it confirmed straightaway. On the positive side, the team members are genuinely friendly and welcoming, and it's clear that the difficulties aren't of their making given the constraints of the current system they're required to work with.

Reception staff were pleasant despite difficult roles

The single star rating reflects the reception team, who despite what must be a challenging role, remained courteous throughout. The clinical staff continue to be difficult to access following recent years. This represents a significant departure from expected standards of care. The primary care service should be reconsidered as part of the wider healthcare system, with alternative providers potentially better positioned to deliver these services. I have attended appointments with multiple healthcare professionals and received different clinical opinions, with the most recent recommendation being medication and a further referral. This has felt inefficient and costly. There is a perception that treatment recommendations are influenced by external commercial interests rather than patient need alone.

Friendly reception made the visit worthwhile

I appreciate the care provided.

Couldn't get appointment despite severe pain

Attempted to book an appointment regarding significant hip discomfort without success. Observed an older individual who had experienced a fall also being unable to access care. The team appeared unwilling to accommodate requests. Found the experience emotionally distressing. If ratings could go lower, they would deserve them. The service fell well short of expectations. It would have been helpful if someone had simply answered the phone to discuss the situation.

Repeat prescriptions deleted without warning

The service has been consistently disappointing with each interaction seeming to deteriorate further. On this occasion, I simply needed a repeat prescription for a medication I have been taking for an extended period. The receptionist explained that a review of my repeat prescriptions had taken place previously, during which all items were removed from my records. I was not made aware of this action beforehand.

Couldn't get appointment so ended up in A&E

Disappointing experience. I have needed to attend the hospital accident and emergency department on two occasions due to being unable to secure a timely appointment at my local practice. Both visits involved lengthy waiting periods before receiving treatment that could have been administered more quickly in a primary care setting. This situation has been frustrating.

Couldn't get through on the phone

This practice has not met my expectations. When commitments are made regarding callbacks or scheduling follow-up appointments, these are often not fulfilled. Attempting to secure an appointment involves lengthy wait times on the phone, only to be told that nothing is available, with no option to book for a future date. The overall service experience has been frustrating and disappointing.

Long waits and struggled to get morning appointments

I attended this practice for a considerable period before relocating. My experience with some of the clinicians was disappointing. One particular doctor's assessments did not identify my condition correctly on multiple occasions, and it took a specialist at another healthcare facility to establish the correct diagnosis. Securing morning appointments proved consistently difficult. Additionally, there was an incident where my medical records became confused with those of another patient. I would encourage prospective patients to carefully consider their options.

Receptionist sorted problems quickly and kindly

We would like to thank the receptionist at your practice. My spouse came in with a couple of concerns which were promptly addressed and resolved. We were very satisfied with the assistance provided and regret that we didn't catch the staff member's name.

Long phone queue but helpful when reached

It took twenty minutes for my call to be answered, which is why I've given four stars overall. However, I would give five stars to the receptionist who assisted me and the healthcare professional who provided my care.

Reception forgot about appointment despite check-in

My mother attended an appointment and arrived quite early, informing the receptionist of her early arrival before taking a seat. When the scheduled time came around, she was not called through. Upon mentioning this to the receptionist, she was told that my mother should have reminded her again and that responsibility lay with my mother for not doing so. This response felt frustrating and unhelpful.

Impossible to book appointments by phone

The practice is difficult to reach when trying to book appointments. If they were looking to hire additional reception staff, I would be interested in the position, as I believe better availability for scheduling would improve the service.

Difficult to get appointments and rude staff

The reception team and staff members were unhelpful, and it was difficult to secure appointment availability.

Phone queue system needs improvement

I attempted to book an appointment by calling at 8am and found myself fifth in the queue. After waiting on the line, the call was disconnected during the transfer process, and I have since been unable to reconnect to the queue due to the high volume of calls.

Impossible to book appointments through the phone queue

Struggling to secure an appointment through any means. There are consistently no slots available by the time contact is made, with suggestions to try again the following week. When attempting to rebook, the situation remains unchanged. Requests for in-person consultations are declined for issues that genuinely require a physical examination and cannot be adequately addressed remotely. A condition escalated to a serious infection and came close to requiring hospital admission before receiving a callback appointment, a situation that might have been prevented with timely access to care initially. Registration with this practice feels ineffective. Access to services appears consistently unavailable.

Long phone queues but appointment eventually arranged

Attempted to arrange an appointment for routine blood work and blood pressure monitoring as recommended by the cancer specialist at the hospital. Called the surgery and experienced a lengthy wait in the telephone queue before speaking with someone who initially stated no appointments were available. A member of staff subsequently called back the following day and was able to accommodate the appointment on the requested date. My husband is currently undergoing cancer treatment, and the experience with the practice has been frustrating. On previous occasions when contacting the surgery, the phone line was disconnected while waiting in the queue. This occurred multiple times during separate attempts to reach the practice. The consolidation of the practices appears to have created additional difficulties with accessibility.

Missed callback left me waiting without apology

Following a text notification to discuss a recent scan outcome, a telephone consultation was scheduled for the next day, however the expected call from the practice did not materialise. An alternative appointment was subsequently offered with a two-week wait, though no acknowledgement of the inconvenience was provided by the reception team. The service fell short of expectations. It would be beneficial if the practice could enhance its communication approach and consider implementing additional resources for managing patient test result enquiries.