Types of appointments
We offer a range of different appointments to ensure that all patients can be cared for in a way which is comfortable and appropriate for them. This includes face-to-face appointments, telephone consultations, group consultations and home visits.
In January 2022 we changed our appointment system to same day appointments for GPs. Our Nurse and Health Care Assistant appointments are pre bookable. We also have appointments available to book online.
Each appointment is usually 10 minutes, this is long enough to deal with one problem. If you have several problems that need attention, please consider this when you book your appointment.
When contacting our surgery, our receptionists will take a few details to ensure that you are booked with the most appropriate person to help you.
Please note all telephone calls to and from the surgery are recorded for quality and training purposes.
Our telephone lines are open:
Monday 07:00 – 18:00
Tuesday 07:00 – 18:00
Wednesday 07:00 – 20:00
Thursday 07:00 – 18:00
Friday 07:00 – 18:00
You can book appointments online via the patient access service. For more information how to get online access, please ask a member of the reception team.
Home Visits
Home visits are for housebound patients only. We can see three times the number of people in the surgery as we can see at the same time visiting homes. It is therefore the most efficient use of our time to see you, wherever possible, at the surgery, where there are also better diagnostic facilities. By coming to the surgery, you are helping us to help you. If you think you may need a home visit, to help us, we would be grateful if requests for a home visit are made between 08:00am – 10:30am.
The doctors may go out on their home visits anytime between finishing morning surgery and starting afternoon surgery. If you phone after the doctors have already left the building, we may not be able to visit until the following day, unless it is an emergency.
Appropriate
- Housebound
- Terminally ill
- Would cause serious harm if moved
Inappropriate
- No transport or money
- Children, young people and anyone who is mobile
- Social reasons or for convenience
Same day help for your poorly child
If you child has become unwell in the last few days and you would like urgent advice please contact us. Please also be aware of the little orange book which provides expert help for parents and carers on how to manage common problems in babies and small children – view it online here. Website – Little-Orange-Book or download the app
eConsults
The practice has been offering eConsults as a way to get advice from their GP or surgery. The condition should not be urgent as the practice will respond in 48 hours on a week day, although it will be longer at the weekend.
Conditions that are good for eConsults are:
- UTI
- Skin conditions if photos are sent
- Fit note requests which are a repeat
- Musculoskeletal problems
eConsults to not work well for:
- Children <2 years old with an acute problem
- A patient with mental health problems
- Cardiac (heart) or respiratory (lung) conditions
- When you have several problems you want to discuss with the GP
- When the patient feels that they have an urgent problem
Extended Access
We recognise that sometimes it is not easy to see us during working hours and therefore we offer early morning appointments with our Advanced Nurse Practitioners, GPs and Health Care Assistants from 7:00am and late evening appointments up to 19:30 on a Wednesday.
Additional appointments are available in the evening and weekends provided by Gateshead Extra Care Service which offers pre-bookable appointments at Central Gateshead Health Centre and Blaydon Primary Care Centre
8:00-20:00 Monday – Friday
09:00-14:00 Saturday – Sunday
Cancelling appointments
If you can’t attend an appointment, for whatever reason, please let us know. Even appointments cancelled up to an hour before the appointment time can be given to another patient. Failing to keep appointments you have made only means that the time is wasted and other patients will have to wait longer to be seen.
Interpreter
If you require an interpreter to attend with you when you see the doctor or assist in a telephone consultation, please notify the receptionist and they will arrange this for you.
Chaperones
All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present for any consultation, examination or procedure where they feel one is required. Please inform the health care profession if you wish to have a chaperone present.
Training Practice
Birtley Medical Group is a GP training practice. GP Registars are fully qualified doctors who intend to pursue their careers in General Practice. They all have experience of working in other branches of medical practice. We value the contribution they make to the work if the practice.