Charmouth Medical Practice

Charmouth Medical Practice 2021-03-22 Person 1 5 0

When telephoning the medical practice I was asked to use econsult for my problem, and on doing so was directed to telephone the surgery and ask for an emergency appointment. On doing so I was triaged by the receptionist who made the decision for me to receive a telephone consultation with the GP 6 hours later. She explained that she considered this an emergency appointment. As far as I am aware the receptionist has no medical training and therefore this is unacceptable.

If the patient is being asked to complete econsult and that system then directs you to telephone your surgery and request an emergency appointment, then that is exactly what the receptionist should give you. The receptionist should not triage if not medically qualified. If the medical practice is going to override econsult directions then the triage should be performed by a qualified nurse who has been trained to triage.