Dr. iQ is our practice mobile app. For the fastest, most convenient way to access our GP services,
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Download Dr. iQ - our practice mobile app: Download Dr. iQ - The fastest way to access our GP services. |
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New patients can register with our practice via Dr. iQ Register with us Conduct online consultations Update your profile View medical records Order medications |
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Measles can spread to other people easily.
Patients who have an appointment to come into the practice should not attend if they have:
Please contact the surgery and one of our clinicians will call you back.
For more information on measles, please visit the NHS website.
On Monday 13 June we are launching our new online consultation app Dr. iQ, which will replace eConsult. We are also making more changes at the Camrose, Gillies and Hackwood Partnership (CGH) so it’s much easier for patients to be seen on the day.
From Monday, all appointment requests which come in by phone, at the practice, or via our new Dr.iQ mobile app will be assessed first by a doctor. The doctor will look at the information provided by the patient, decide how urgent it is, and then who is the best and most appropriate member of the practice team to provide care.
Based on this, and the patient’s preference, they will then be offered an on-the-day face-to-face or telephone appointment. There will also be the opportunity to book appointments in advance where this is needed. This puts our doctors right at the front of the process and means more of our patients get same-day care. This will mean less need to have pre-booked appointments, which frees up more slots, and ultimately will provide overall better access for our patients.
To support the roll-out of this important change, we are trying to keep as many slots free this Monday as possible and are therefore currently limiting the number of pre-booked appointments. If a patient needs to be seen urgently before Monday, then they should contact us as usual.
You can find out more about our Dr. iQ app and how to download it by visiting our Online Services page.
We have put together some extra information below to show how we are responding to your requests for easier access and more on-the-day appointments, please take a few moments to read this, thank you
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You said: ‘eConsult takes a long time to fill in and I find it too difficult to use’
Replacing the eConsult system is something we are doing following your feedback and how dissatisfied you are with this system.
From the 13th June, we ask those of you who can (and want to) use Dr. iQ to submit an online consultation via the mobile app. You can use the app instead of calling us so it’s more convenient. This may be to tell us about a change in your details, request medication or to speak to a clinician. Your Dr. iQ online consultation is seen by a GP and assessed based on the information you provide. The GP will assess your online consultation and will decide who is the most appropriate team member to help with that issue or query, and you will either receive a response to your request via the app or our administrators will contact you to book an appointment.
You said: ‘I am worried that a receptionist is making decisions about my care’
Our doctors look at the information provided by our patients, decide how urgent their request is, and then who is the best and most appropriate member of the practice team to provide care. We want to make sure patients get to the right place the first time. Not only is this a better experience for you, but it is also a more efficient way to work and helps us maximise our appointment availability. We are confident that this new way of working will bring more reassurance to our patients that a doctor is reviewing your problem the same day you contact us and assessing the urgency.
You said: ‘Some patients don’t want to use online access to the surgery.’
It is not mandatory to use the app and we respect patient choice. Patients who cannot or do not want to use the app can call us like they do now. As more patients use Dr. iQ, it should reduce call waiting times.
Those who are not able to, or who do not want to use Dr. iQ should call us as normal. The receptionists will ask some questions and note down your answers as well as your preference for either a face-to-face or a telephone call. A doctor will assess this request and our administration team will be in touch to book your appointment as appropriate.
You said: ‘It’s very difficult to get through to the practice on the phone, the call queues are too long.’
We hope that our patients will find the Dr. iQ app a more efficient way to contact us and will prefer to use this system. We aim to provide better access to the surgery via our phone lines in this way, for patients who are unable or do not wish to use the app or who need to speak to someone.
Additionally, there is work going on at the practice to bring down our call wait times, including more training, performance, recruitment and our team structure. We know long waits are frustrating for you and we are taking this very seriously, and thank you for your understanding and patience.
You said: ‘Why aren’t you doing face-to-face appointments?’
We do many face-to-face appointments every day. We re-started direct bookable face-to-face appointments in November 2021. We had to take a brief break at the end of December 2021 due to the ask by the Government to prioritise COVID-19 vaccinations and the Omicron Covid strain. Since then, we have increased face-to-face appointments significantly. Currently, all of our employed GPs who are not the ‘On The Day’ GP have a mixture of direct bookable face-to-face and telephones calls every day.
With this new system alongside Dr. iQ, the appointments will be able to be either a telephone call or face-to-face, which is why we ask that you state your preference if you have one please.