The Phoenix Practice

Appointment cancelled with no replacement available

I scheduled an appointment well in advance with a two-week lead time. However, I received a call the day prior informing me that the clinician was unavailable due to illness and no alternative practitioner could be arranged. The earliest alternative slot offered was nearly three weeks away. Following up with the practice over the subsequent weeks has not yet resulted in securing a confirmed appointment.

Reception service has become less helpful

It has been difficult to reach the practice by telephone. When I do manage to get through by appointment at reception, I prefer to visit in person. I have always appreciated the clinical staff and the doctors. The reception team has been helpful in the past, though my recent experience has been different.

Repeat prescriptions repeatedly forgotten here

The repeat prescription service has been consistently problematic. On multiple recent occasions, I've arrived at the pharmacy only to discover that the surgery hasn't processed my repeat prescription request, forcing me to return to the surgery each time to follow up. This recurring issue with what should be a straightforward administrative task is frustrating. I'm concerned about how efficiently other services are managed, particularly when it comes to booking appointments for consultations.

Receptionist repeats same speech without understanding patient needs

Whenever I attempt to book an appointment, suitable availability is never offered to me. One member of the reception team comes across as dismissive and appears to lack compassion towards patients. They deliver the same scripted response repeatedly without variation, seemingly having memorised a standard speech. Their apparent inability to recognise that people only contact the practice when genuinely unwell is striking, and their unwillingness to provide genuine assistance is deeply frustrating. The practice operates morning and afternoon emergency slots that require a telephone call to access. Even when calling at the exact time slots open, the queue is extremely long, with dozens of callers ahead. By the time you reach the front of the queue, no emergency appointments remain available, and instead you receive calls from clinicians after standard hours have finished, which provides no practical help if someone requires immediate medication, prescriptions, referrals or documentation. This limitation is not clearly communicated when you first call, at a time when you are desperate to resolve your health concerns. I understand the practice is busy, but surely patient wellbeing should be the main focus? Surely there could be brief moments throughout the day to contact someone from the waiting list? What purpose does asking about symptoms serve if those symptoms are not actually considered in the response? For all anyone knows, there could be something significant requiring urgent attention, but because appointments cannot be arranged and contact only happens after 6PM, potential issues remain unidentified. Thank you to the reception staff member today for making an already unwell patient feel considerably worse and more frustrated.

Staff were kind but appointments hard to find

Poor appointment availability. The team are pleasant and welcoming, though the practice appears to be struggling with significant resource constraints.