You need an appointment to see any of the clinical staff.
You can book in any of the following ways.
You can book an appointment up to four weeks in advance. You can request a telephone consultation if your problem only needs advice and not a face to face consultation.
We will only carry out blood tests if requested by one of the doctors. You cannot ask for a blood test yourself.
Please note that you cannot book evening and weekend appointments online.
Urgent (Same Day) Appointments
If you think your problem is urgent, we aim to give you an appointment on the same day. We offer same day appointments based on clinical need. This means you may not see the doctor of your choice. Please do not abuse this service as it delays us from seeing patients who are unwell.
Sick notes, repeat prescriptions and referrals are not suitable for urgent appointments.
Our reception staff will ask you for details of your problem. The doctors ask them to do this so they can prioritise same day appointments. All our staff must keep anything you tell them confidential.
Routine Appointments
For any problem that is not urgent, we will offer you the next available appointment. If you want to see a specific doctor then the wait time may be longer depending on the doctor's availability.
Home Visits
We encourage patients to come to the surgery. This is where we have our full equipment and facilities available. We appreciate this is not always possible. If you do need a home visit, please call reception before 11.00am. The receptionists will ask for details to allow the doctor to assess the urgency of the call.
You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. A GP will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it. They will also decide how urgently a visit is needed.
Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls.
A community nurse may visit you at home if your GP refers you. A health visitor should visit you at home if you've recently had a baby or have recently registered with a GP and have a child under five years.
Morning, Evening and Weekend Appointments
The practice is a member of Grange & Lakes Primary Care Network (PCN). The PCN offers appointments on weekday evenings from 6.30pm to 8.00pm and on Saturday mornings.
The PCN works with Morecambe Bay Primary Care Collaborative to provide these appointments. The appointments are available at 3 practices in the PCN.
- Cartmel Surgery
- Central Lakes (Ambleside) Health Centre
- Nutwood Surgery
The appointment may be with a doctor you have not seen before. The doctor will have access to your medical record. We will receive details of your consultation.
Please ask the reception staff if one of these appointments would be convenient for you.
Chaperones
Our Practice is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times; the safety of everyone is of paramount importance.
All medical consultations, examinations and investigations are potentially distressing. Patients can find examinations, investigations or photography involving the breasts, genitalia or rectum particularly intrusive (these examinations are collectively referred to as ‘intimate examinations’). Consultations involving dimmed lights, the need for patients to undress or intensive periods of being touched may also make a patient feel vulnerable.
Chaperoning is the process of having a third person present during such consultations to provide support, both emotional and sometimes physical, to the patient, to provide practical support to the doctor as required, and also to protect the doctor and patient against allegations of improper behaviour during such consultations.