GP Surgeries introduce patient call back function

The GP surgeries run by Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust have introduced a call back function, removing the need for patients waiting on hold when calling their surgery during particularly busy periods. 

Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust actively encourage patients to share their experiences through various channels to enhance service quality. Feedback was gathered via GP surveys and the NHS Friends and Family Test, highlighting that patients found waiting on hold to book an appointment to be a negative experience. Waiting on hold only occurs when more than once person is calling the surgery at the same time, but this can be the case during busy times of the day. To address this concern, the Trust surgeries have added an option for patients to choose a call back rather than wait on a call.

This service is available for patients registered with Humber Primary Care in Bridlington, Market Weighton Group Practice and King Street Medical Centre in Cottingham. Patients choosing this option do not lose their place in the waiting queue and they receive a call back as soon as an operator is available to speak with them. This represents a huge step forward in the management of patients and protecting their time.

In addition to the call back function, patients are also offered an alternative to calling the practice by using the website to assist with a variety of requests. Via the surgery websites, patients are able to perform a number of steps including booking or cancelling a GP appointment, ordering repeat prescriptions and providing feedback. There is also an option to engage with an online consultation, removing the need to attend the surgery for an appointment.

The call back function at the GP surgeries has been welcomed by patients with many agreeing that this saves them holding on the phone while they wait for an operator to come free.

Sue Wardlow, Primary Care Service Manager at Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust, said, “We listen to patient feedback and the introduction of our call back function is an excellent example of how we use this feedback to make improvements to our services. The callback facility is easy to use and the system automatically calls the patient back when its their turn. We are delighted that our patients are using and benefitting from this change in our telephone operating system”.

For more ways to provide feedback, patients are encouraged to use the surgery websites and help them to continually improve services for patient care.

https://www.humberprimarycare.nhs.uk/

https://marketweightonpractice.nhs.uk/

https://kingstreetmedicalcentre.nhs.uk/