Palatine Group Practice

 

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How do I get the most out of my appointment?

 

WAITING TIME ONCE ARRIVED AT THE SURGERY

Doctors’ appointment slots last 10 minutes and are intended to cover one problem, or at the most, two.  But quite a lot of people will go into the doctor with several problems at once – hence they over run.  Similarly, it is only one person per appointment.  If you take someone else with you into your appointment, they should not use the opportunity to ask the doctor about their health problem too. 

The doctors here are very keen to let people have the time that their condition requires, but if people spend ages unnecessarily, or ‘save up’ issues until they’ve got a list of them, it is really unfair on both the doctor and the other patients in the waiting room – who may be feeling very poorly.  If you know in advance that you will need longer, please book a double appointment. 

It has been suggested that the length of appointments should be increased so that they don’t overrun and so that people could have more time with the doctor.  The 10 minute slot which we use aims to provide an average over the people who only take a couple of minutes and those that need more than 10.  Unfortunately, this is a bit of a vicious circle: if we increased the slot time, it would mean fewer appointments, so it would be much more difficult to get an appointment. 

 

TOP TIPS FOR WHEN YOU VISIT THE DOCTOR 

BEFORE THE APPOINTMENT:      

• Write down your two or three most important questions. 
• Write down the details of your symptoms, including when they started and what makes them better or worse. 
• If you are taking any ‘over the counter’ medicines or supplements that the Doctor has not prescribed, make sure that you take a list of them, so that the Doctor knows what you are taking. 

DURING THE APPOINTMENT:

• Don’t be afraid to ask if you don’t understand. 
• If you aren’t sure about one or more of the words about your condition or treatment, ask for them to be written down. 
• Write things down in a notebook.  This makes it easier to remember afterwards what the Doctor or Nurse told you.

BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE APPOINTMENT MAKE SURE YOU:

• Check that you’ve understood what was said.  Ask the Doctor/Nurse to explain again if you aren’t sure.
• Check that you’ve understood what treatment (if any) is being recommended for you and how it will happen.  E.g. will it be an out patient appointment at the hospital, or do you need blood tests, or have you been given some medication.  If the Doctor has prescribed some medicine for you, do you understand how you should take it and when it should be started/finished?
• Is there anything that you should stop or start doing that is making your condition worse?
• Is there anything that you can do to help yourself?
• What happens next?  (E.g. do you need to make another appointment?)