West Common Lane Teaching Practice
KC
Karolina C. 2 years ago • From Google
Bad
I had a very poor overall experience at this practice, characterised by dismissive attitudes and inadequate communication. Following a hospital appointment, recommended medications were not prescribed to me, which I only discovered months later when I transferred to a different practice and reviewed the hospital correspondence. This meant I endured several years of intermittent symptoms that remained untreated and unmanaged. Additionally, my son's appointment was rescheduled to a different time slot with minimal notice via text message while I was already travelling to the original appointment time, having left work early and collected him from school accordingly. When we arrived late due to this change, the practice did not make any accommodation and informed us there were no available appointments for the foreseeable future. Getting through to book appointments is extremely difficult, with the answering service frequently directing callers to ring back as slots are rarely available. On one occasion, I was offered an appointment three weeks after experiencing a reaction, and when I attended with a detailed list of symptoms and photographic evidence, I was dismissed without proper consideration. Appointments also involve substantial waiting times, typically between thirty and fifty minutes. I was once turned away for arriving two minutes late due to traffic, yet I have consistently experienced late running on other visits. Telephone appointments presented their own difficulties, as the practice used an incorrect phone number on two separate occasions within a fortnight. The reception staff were not always pleasant or helpful, and the practice appears to have significant staff turnover with different clinicians seen regularly. While the practice does respond to complaint letters and the practice manager was courteous during phone conversations, substantial improvements are clearly necessary. Since moving to another practice, I have noticed a marked difference in the standard of care and approach offered, making the decision to transfer well worthwhile.
sharon b.