Need to make an appointment for weekends and evenings?
You can now book a GP (family doctor) appointment over the weekend or evening at a GP centre in South Tyneside from 1st September 2017.
This is called the South Tyneside Extended Primary care Service or STEPS.
A small number of specific surgeries will be open on different days and times to create more options for patients.
Who is providing this service?
A new company called South Tyneside Health Collaboration has been asked by the local clinical commissioning group (CCG), the NHS organisation who pay for health services in South Tyneside, to run the service.
This company is formed from 16 GP practices in South Tyneside, and will work with all 22 practices in the area to make sure that patients are able to book appointments.
How do I get an appointment?
You can get an appointment by calling your normal GP practice during normal working hours. You may be asked some questions to check that it is the best service for your needs. All patients will have a 15 minute booked appointment slot. If you are late it may not be possible to see you in that session and you will need a new appointment.
BOOK YOUR APPOINTMENT
Opening Times
Monday - Friday | 7am - 8am
Monday - Thursday | 6:30pm - 8pm
Saturday | Please ring your GP for appointment times
Sunday | Please ring your GP for appointment times
Important note: Not all locations will be open each day or each session. You must book an appointment via your GP practice first
Which GP Practices offer this service?
- East Wing Surgery
- Ellison View Surgery
- The Glen Medical Group
- Farnham Medical Centre
- Marsden Road Health Centre
- Central Surgery
- Drs Haque & Haque
- Talbot Medical Centre
- Wawn Street Surgery
- Dr Chander
- Imeary Street
- St Georges and Riverside Practice
- Whitburn Surgery
- Colliery Court Medical Group
FAQs
How do I get an appointment?
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You can get an appointment by calling your normal GP practice during normal working hours or through the 111 service when the practice is closed. You may be asked some questions to check that it is the best service for your needs. All patients will have a 15 minute booked appointment slot. If you are late it may not be possible to see you in that session and you will need a new appointment.
Can I just walk in and wait?
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Unfortunately not. Patients are selected for the service by their registered practice or through NHS 111. If you do turn up without an appointment you will be directed to other nearby services by reception staff.
Who will be seen?
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The service will see any routine and urgent patient where they are unable to wait, and where A&E or the urgent care centre might not be suitable. We will also see patients who find it difficult to access appointments during the normal working day due to work or carer commitments. Please note that we are unable to see Private or Fee Paying patients.
Will I be examined?
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Depending on your condition, the doctor may ask to examine you. If you require to be accompanied during the examination either by a friend or relative that is fine. You are also allowed to ask for a chaperone from the practice if you wish.
Can I get flu jab or other vaccinations?
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Yes. This service is an extension of the services you would usually receive at your own GP practice. This includes vaccinations, smear tests and discussion of blood results. We are unable to take blood samples for testing. We are also unable to offer vaccinations for travel to foreign countries as a fee would be payable for such services.
Who will I see?
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You will see a fully qualified and experienced local GP, nurse or health care assistant. A receptionist will also be on duty who can act as a chaperone should you require it.
Can the service see my notes?
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Yes, the GP is able to see all your notes provided you have given consent. You might be asked to take along your current medication as part of the consultation.
How will my GP know that I have been seen by a different doctor?
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The doctor or nurse who you see will enter details directly into your electronic notes and a message will be sent to your own practice to let your doctor that you have been seen. If you need to be followed up later, your normal doctor can read exactly what your problem was and what was prescribed for you.
Will the service refer me for specialist treatment?
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If the doctor thinks that you require more specialist treatment they may ask you to attend A&E, the urgent care hub or some other health care service. Where the doctor thinks you need further treatment but it isn’t urgent they will write to your GP starting that referral process. Your own GP will then complete the referral, or they may then ask to see you again. We will check to make sure that people receiving the correct follow-up care.
Can the doctor prescribe medication?
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Depending on the findings of the doctor you may be given a prescription. This could be for emergency supplies until you can see your normal GP, or urgent medication to help with a problem such as antibiotics for an infection. The service is also able to carry out chronic disease monitoring, NHS health checks and cervical smears.
Where can I collect medication over a holiday period?
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You can attend your normal pharmacy if open for both help, advice or to collect medications prescribed. The practice will have a list of pharmacies open out of hours and over holiday periods. This list will also be available on the following web sites: www.urgentoremergency.co.uk/gpopening-times or www.southtynesideccg.nhs.uk
What do I do if I want complain?
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We will always try to provide the best possible service for patients, but understand that we may not always meet everyone’s needs. Depending on your problem usually ask that patients speak to the receptionist – if we know about issues at the time we may be able to help you immediately.
The receptionist will also have some complaint forms. If you do not want to leave your contact details on the form you do not have to, but we would then be unable to provide a personalised response, and we may not be able to fully investigate your issues.
If you do leave your contact details, we will contact you within three days to acknowledge your complaint. We will then write to you within 28 days to let you know the outcome of the investigation. We also let the local clinical commissioning group (CCG) know of any complaints and issues that are raised about our service. We will share with all members of the team any action points and issues to improve services, but not patient details.
Is the service registered with CQC?
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Not yet, but an application has been submitted. As the service is being run from existing GP centres, and using their fully qualified local GPs and nurses we are not technically required to register with CQC. However, we do plan to deliver other services in coming months, hence our application to them. The service has not yet been inspected by CQC, but they have conducted an interview and have checked our policies, procedures and other documents relating to us in order to approve our registration. We will be subject to a random inspection in the future.