William Brown Medical Centre

Phone queue sorted it quickly for me

Attended the local health centre on two occasions within a week, but found the visits to be unproductive. After contacting the wider healthcare service, the matter was resolved promptly and with excellent care.

Phone answering made all the difference

These 5 stars are for the reception team member who is the standout of the practice—polite, dedicated, and instrumental in keeping things running smoothly. I feel reassured whenever they answer the phone. Well-deserved recognition!

Seen on time and genuinely helpful staff

Could not fault the service or any of the staff in any way as they went above and beyond for me. I was seen on time on both occasions and it is a shame that more places could not be as good as this practice. Thank you very much.

Promised callbacks that never materialised

What a disappointing experience. My spouse was unwell with a throat issue and called multiple times requesting a callback, but unfortunately never received one. It appears I will need to contact the practice again tomorrow in hopes of arranging an in-person appointment with a clinician.

Staff were helpful and friendly

Excellent team

Prescription refills need a narrow weekday window

The practice appears to be managing a high patient load, which creates challenges. Prescription refills require calling during a narrow weekday window that doesn't accommodate many people's schedules, including those with daytime commitments. During my appointments, the interactions felt rushed and distant. Overall, I found the experience frustrating.

Reception staff were rude and dismissive

The practice appears to be managing a large patient list and struggles with the volume of appointments. The reception team's manner came across as rather dismissive and curt during my interactions with them.

Repeat prescriptions handled without proper explanation

I was extremely disappointed with my experience at this surgery. Returning here has been a significant regret for me. My regular medication arrangement was changed without clear communication about why this occurred. When I inquired about this, I received a response that it couldn't be done, though no reasoning was provided. I contacted the surgery to request my medication and was informed it would be available that day. However, upon arrival to collect it, I was advised it wouldn't be ready until the following day. Due to my schedule, I'm unable to collect it then and won't be returning until the following week. This has left me without access to my medication during this period.

Appointment booking mix-up caused unnecessary delay

I typically have positive experiences at this practice, however I attended this morning following what I believed was a confirmed appointment from the previous week. Upon arrival, I was informed that my appointment was actually scheduled for the following day. I am confident I booked it for a different day due to my work commitments, so this has resulted in an unexpected delay to receiving care.

Impossible to reach surgery by phone

I've been attempting to reach the surgery repeatedly throughout the afternoon without success, only to hear an automated message indicating that the practice is closed. This experience was frustrating and reflects what I consider to be inadequate service provision.

Struggling to book appointments and get prescriptions

The service provided was disappointing, with significant difficulties experienced in obtaining appointments and managing prescription requests. Overall, accessing care at this practice proved to be a challenging and frustrating process.

Repeated prescription delays and dismissive phone staff

I have had further cause to raise concerns about the level of service provided by this practice. After being prescribed medication for an injury without what I felt was adequate initial assessment, I found the initial dosage to be ineffective. This led to a frustrating cycle of having to contact the practice every six days for prescription adjustments. Once the dosage was eventually increased and a larger bottle provided, I discovered this too was insufficient, as the quantity would not last until the next scheduled repeat prescription date. When I needed to contact the practice again to address this issue, I encountered what I perceived as an unhelpful attitude from staff members. I was informed that I would need to wait for the pharmacist to log on before my prescription could be processed, leaving me without medication for the entire day. When I called back later in the afternoon to follow up, I was told again that I was not the only patient at the practice and would have to continue waiting. This timing was particularly problematic as it was approaching the closing time of local pharmacies, which would have left me without access to my medication for another extended period. Fortunately, I was able to visit another location and speak with a receptionist who took a different approach. This staff member was able to quickly resolve the situation by contacting a clinician and arranging for my prescription to be sent to my pharmacy within minutes. This demonstrated that the issue could have been resolved promptly had there been a willingness to understand the urgency of my situation and to communicate with greater empathy. I would encourage the practice to provide training to all staff members on patient communication and to ensure that urgent medication needs are handled with appropriate priority and compassion. I hope the practice will reflect on this experience and make improvements to their service.

Couldn't get what I needed here

The entire experience was disappointing from start to finish, with an inability to meet basic requirements.

Called back after closing time promise broken

I called early in the morning regarding my child experiencing some discomfort and was informed that someone would contact me later that day. Based on previous experiences, I had concerns about whether a callback would actually happen, but I decided to give them another chance and confirmed their closing time was 830pm. By 630pm, I still hadn't received any call, so I attempted to ring back only to hear an automated message stating the surgery was closed, despite their advertised hours being 830am until 830pm. This discrepancy between their stated availability and actual closure time was very frustrating.

Couldn't get a callback for days

This would have been a zero star review if possible. I received a text message prompting me to contact the practice and arrange an appointment regarding hospital results. I called the surgery immediately, but it took six days to receive a callback. I found this response time to be unacceptable and felt the service fell well short of what I would expect from a medical practice.

Medication wasn't ready despite being told it was

The service I received was extremely disappointing. I was given misleading information during a phone call and instructed to collect medication at a later time, but when I arrived, the medication had not been prepared. The pharmacy staff member was dismissive and unhelpful. I would not recommend this practice to anyone seeking professional and caring healthcare.

Reception staff unhelpful when booking appointments

I found it frustrating to attempt accessing an appointment with a healthcare professional regarding my concern. On multiple occasions, I felt the reception staff were unhelpful and seemed uncertain about their processes. I was directed to contact 111, which left me questioning why I struggled to secure a GP appointment despite being told they were available. It appeared that appointments were being allocated to individuals who may not have required urgent attention, whereas I felt my need was genuine given my circumstances. The practice appears to be experiencing difficulties in its service delivery.

Practice made switching too much hassle

I have found this practice to be quite unsatisfactory overall. Throughout several years, I have experienced numerous problems with their service. The main reason I have remained with them is simply due to the inconvenience that would be involved in transferring my entire household to an alternative surgery.

Practice closure left us without urgent medication

The practice was closed unexpectedly when we needed to access a prescription, with no prior notification given. This was frustrating as medication access is important for ongoing care.

Reception communication and admin processes need urgent improvement

I would rate this experience far lower if possible. I have encountered unsatisfactory service regarding both clinical care and the administrative operations of this practice. I have communicated my concerns to relevant staff members on multiple occasions, and regrettably these interactions have predominantly been disappointing. I cannot recommend this practice to others and have recently undertaken some research into the organisation, which led me to this platform where existing feedback resonated strongly with my own experience. I also discovered performance rankings indicating this practice is positioned at the lower end compared to other facilities in the region. Significant improvements are clearly needed, as numerous patients appear to be receiving substandard service that negatively impacts their wellbeing. I have experienced issues with administrative communications, including messages directed to incorrect email addresses, correspondence addressed to me using an inaccurate name, and telephone contact attempts with unclear messaging systems. There are numerous other concerns I could mention. The patients at this practice warrant a substantially better standard of care and service.