The Glebe Surgery

The Glebe Surgery 2024-08-14 Person 5 5 0

Great service, thank you

Nothing, it was all very good.

The Glebe Surgery 2024-08-14 Person 5 5 0

Can wait a long time on the phone but Dr Sherwell is always accessible.

Can’t think of anything

The Glebe Surgery 2024-08-14 Person 4 5 0

Went to the reception and booked an appointment with the receptionist, only took a couple of minutes

I did confirm my new address is now 13 Church Close , Ashington , West Sussex RH20 3DL However my prescription on collection referred to my old address of 8 Dukes Row , Cootham. Can you please update my records to show my Ashington address please

The Glebe Surgery 2024-08-14 Person 4 5 0

The surgery seems to have far too many patients these days which maybe why appointments are so hard to get. It used to be that you could always get an appointment the same week you called.

Nothing apart from having more appointments available.

The Glebe Surgery 2024-08-14 Person 4 5 0

As I have Type 1 Diabetes, and have recently experienced some other possibly connected issues, I have had need to see/speak to the GP or nurse on a number of occasions in the last couple of years. Overall this has been a great experience, albeit it is evident sometimes the pressure the surgery staff are under as consultations can seem a little rushed. But I don't see this as a negative necessarily as I'm all for using everyone's time efficiently, and the communication is generally excellent. However I am providing feedback now as there is an issue of principle I'd like to raise which I feel goes to the heart of patient care. I set this out in the 'Anything better we could have done' box below.

My concern is that there have been a couple of conversations recently with clinical staff which tried to put focus on what I am costing the practice and/or the NHS, which I feel is unjustified and inappropriate. The first related to blood glucose sensors (Libre 2) which are vital to being able to manage my diabetes and have been provided on repeat prescription for some years now. It emerged that these are amongst a group of more expensive medicines/supplies that the practice issues that are being effectively rationed, according to the conversation I had. I have to wait a number of weeks before I am able to order my next prescription online. The problem with this is that sometimes the sensors fail or come off the body before they are meant to, and so having a rigid window means that my supplies are in danger of running down over time and then being left with no supply at all. The fact they are rationed suggests the patient is not to be trusted to only order the amount they require (which I find, to be honest, a little insulting even if there are a minority of 'stockpilers' - but I am not one of them!). I was told this is because they are so expensive that the surgery has to be careful about issuing too many. So, whether intentionally or not, I am being made to feel that I am costing the system too much. My greater fear is that some patients could take this to heart and stop asking for the supplies they need, and are entitled to, because they feel guilty about costing the NHS too much. I have had another recent conversation whereby it emerged that another NHS service that used to be free is now charged for - a simple letter to take through airport security which I should really have due to the need to take life-sustaining supplies, including an insulin pump, when I cross international borders. But apparently this is 'optional' because I 'choose' to go on holiday, and therefore chargeable. Similarly, a simple ear syringe procedure, to resolve aural discomfort and sometimes impaired hearing, is also now not considered essential and routinely NHS patients have to pay for a private treatment (which may cause some people to not seek treatment and suffer longer term effects). I fully appreciate that GP practices increasingly and through no fault of their own have to conduct their business in a commercial fashion, which is no doubt leading to these decisions. But I do feel there are implications for patients' well-being and therefore wanted to highlight as feedback.