Alvaston Medical Centre

Written by a patient

Myself and wife have been with this surgery since setting up house in Alvaston some thirty three years ago it has always been a very good practice to be attached to, until about two years to eighteen months ago it has gone down hill fast and now to try and get an appointment is like trying to win the lottery. My wife popped in on Monday with the reply from the receptionists there are no appointments and the two week advance bookings have all gone please ring at 0800 in the morning. Tuesday morning rang and after getting in the queue she was told that she was 54th in the queue so by staying on the phone she eventualy spoke to a receptionist at 0850 some 50 minuts later and was greeted with the usual comments there are no appointments available. So Wednesday she tries again not so bad this time as for the queue only 30 waiting but yet again no appointments available. Today is Thursday and she will be trying again, as she starts work at 0700 she has to phone from work and sit on the phone the whole time. I was informed that Alvaston Medical Centre has more than 12000 patients its no wonder its impossible to get an appointment and of course they are still taking on new people with the new estate being in our catchment area so this will make it even more impossible to see a doctor, at this moment in time this Centre is not fulfilling its duty of care and if someone could explain to me what we are supposed to do when trying to get advise or an appointment from a doctor from this surgery? We are told not to go to A&E unless you are on deaths door as they are in melt down but am unable to get an appointment at our local Medical Centre, its getting near 0800 so its back on the phone again and am not holding out for any good news regarding getting an appointment, but you never know.

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Written by a patient

Since changes were made late last year to the appointment system this surgery has rapidly gone down hill. Its no wonder that A&E departments are facing the problems they are.

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Written by a patient

Took a while to get through (first thing on a Monday morning) and described symptoms to the receptionist. She explained the triage doctor would call back to decide whether an emergency appointment was needed. Aston Surgery receptionist phoned me shortly after to explain the doctor had read the notes, didn't need to speak directly to me, and to attend an emergency appointment two hours later. Dr Archer was great, diagnosed a throat problem and had me on the ENT ward at the Royal within an hour. Our family has always had excellent service from the Alvaston Medical Centre and the Aston Surgery (and Shardlow, which was most convenient of all until it closed). We generally use the surgery for rare incidences of urgent care - and have never failed to either (a) get an urgent/same day appointment and (b) receive excellent care. What some people have written in their reviews on this site is certainly not the surgery I recognise having used it for six years now. Staff have always been polite, courteous and professional and we have every confidence in the way they have treated ourselves and our two young children.

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Written by a carer

if you want great care avoid this surgery at all costs. Reception staffs attitude is truly awful, although there is the odd staff member that appears to still view the job as a vocation on the whole over the years I have been there I can not praise the surgery in any particular way.It is your typical dismissive NHS GP practice, all health problems are caused by the patient, all health concerns are ignored until raised with a higher authority(ie NHS England) which you can only do if the surgery hasn't convinced you to fill in a complaints form... which of course they hand out like candy and can become quite insistent at reception that you follow that complaints process .Staff knowing full well that the complaint can then not be escalated other than to the Ombudsman and therefor the Practice Manager can control the complaint internally and serious complaints are never resolved or improvements to patient care are never addressed by a higher authority. The complaint does not exist except as standard letter templates sent out to all patients who complete a complaints form. I doubt they even read the complaint as another patient said to me while queuing outside the surgery door early one morning." They probably land straight in the Practice Managers waste basket" If you want great healthcare do not consider Alvaston Medical Centre as this Surgery by it's own admission on it's Website News feed. Can not cope and therefor the staff are under extreme stress, trying to do a difficult job with off times rude (frustrated) or difficult(complaining) patients(people with sometimes extremely serious health concerns) needing appointments(these do not exist at this surgery, not same ,next day, online, pre bookable ) Best advice ...Nhs choices..."preferable gp "option and make sure you read customer reviews carefully and see which surgery rates the highest.

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Written by a patient

I am a cancer patient with many other ongoing medical conditions including ashma, arthritis, osteoporosis, fibromyalgia, pernicious anemia, Celiac, various food & medication allergies, Hip displysia, I have limited mobility, & in constant pain, so need to see a GP regularly Up till 2015 I used to think that this was one of the best GP surgery in ALVASTON the receptionist were pleasent & helpful, then they changed the appointment system & it's now gone down from top ten to 0 the only appointments available online are to see a practise nurse, getting to see A Doctor is getting Impossible, & what happened to being able to make appointments two weeks in front with a doctor of your choice, I understand that the doctors & nurses are all very busy, but if they can not cope with the patients they had in 2015 why have they taken more on from the new estate that is being built off shardlow road, causing many patients like me distress & concern. apart from ordering my medication online I can't see the point of the online system cause there's no appointments available even as I write this review I feel that i am wasting my time because things won't change it can only get worse,

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