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The Hawthorns
2015-03-04
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Written by a patient
Written by a patient 4th March 2015
Overall this surgery is good. However, on a couple of occasions recently I have requested an appointment with a female GP and each time the receptionists have made me feel as if my request were a nuisance or 'over the top'. As a new mother, there are many instances where a woman may feel more comfortable discussing certain issues or being examined by a female rather than a male doctor. It is unacceptable to make the patient feel that they are causing a fuss by this simple request, and I would hope that no-one else experiences this in the future.
5th May 2015
Response from The Hawthorns
I am sorry we made you feel uncomfortable. Unfortunately we have more male GP 'sessions' than female sessions, as our full time GP partners are all male. Our female GPs are all part-time, so as we have GP lists (where each patient is allocated to a specific GP, for continuity) it is often very hard to try and squeeze a patient in with an already full GP. The reception staff try and allocate patients as fairly as possible, and sometimes this is hard for them to achieve. The majority of patients like having an allocated GP, for continuity, but we realise that this doesn't suit all. The government have advised that all GP's have to have a responsible GP for each patient by April 2016. In some cases this will be welcomed throughout the UK, but in others this is harder to achieve when a patient asks for a GP who is not their 'usual' GP. I hope I have explained this situation, and again, apologise for any distress our patient lists may have caused you. From the Practice Manager at The Hawthorns Surgery.