Services

Surgery Times

You can book online by clicking here or by telephoning the surgery. Our busiest times are between 8:00 - 10:00. Call are answered a lot more quickly if you ring outside these times.

The Reception desk and telephones are open from 08:00 – 18:30 Monday to Friday. The surgery is closed at weekends and bank holidays.

All consultations are by appointment only. If you wish to consult with a specific doctor we will do our best to accommodate your wish subject to the availability of appointments.

If you cannot keep your appointment please cancel it. This frees appointments for others and prevents waste of our time and NHS money. We see over 200 patients per weekday in surgeries and clinics. Those patients who demand immediate appointments for non-urgent problems, without booking, create delays for doctors, staff and patients who have made an appointment. All serious cases and patients with genuinely urgent problems will always be seen. If you are unable to wait for a routine appointment, please give the receptionist brief details of your condition/illness to help make the appropriate arrangements.

Sick Notes

Patients do not need a sick note from the doctor for the first seven days of any illness involving time off work. A self-certificate from your employer is all that is needed. As NHS certificates do not cover this period, patients who insist on a sick note may obtain a private sick note for which a charge is made. Patients do not need a sick note to return to work. Appointments are taken up unnecessarily by patients requesting sick notes. A letter informing your employer of the rules governing sick notes is available at Reception.

Out Of Surgery Hours

When the surgery is closed you have a choice: if you wish to speak to an emergency doctor between the hours of 18:30 to 8:00 weekdays and 18:30 Friday to 8:30 Monday and bank holidays please telephone 020 8401 3637 for emergencies only. Our out-of hours service is provided by CROYDOC. Your message will be passed to the duty doctor who will phone back to advise you. These telephone calls are recorded. Home visits are only carried out if the doctor feels it is medically necessary. In recent times the out-of-hours service has been found to be grossly abused by a minority of patients resulting in delays to genuinely ill patients being seen. Patients are therefore requested to act responsibly in making requests for house calls out of hours and are encouraged to learn how to deal with minor illnesses/conditions themselves. If you require health information or advice, NHS Direct, a 24-hour nurse-led advice line, is available on 0845 4647 or www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk.

Services In Croydon

The following services are also available in Croydon:

Croydon NHS Walk-in Centre, 45 High Street Croydon CR0 1QD

Open every day of the year, the Walk-in Centre offers fast and convenient access to healthcare advice and treatment seven days a week. No appointment is needed. Services include treatment for minor injuries and illnesses and advice on staying healthy.

Monday to Friday 07:00 – 22:00

Weekends/Bank holidays 09:00 – 22:00

Mental Health Crisis Line

A 24-hour Mental Health Crisis Line, run by community psychiatric nurses, is provided by South London & Maudsley NHS Trust.

Tel: 0800 318 7213

Minor Injuries Unit

Parkway Health Centre, Parkway, New Addington CR0 0JA

Specialist nurses treat a wide range of minor injuries and problems. No appointment is required.

Open 7 days a week including bank holidays 14:00-22:00

Access to Emergency Dentistry Tel 020 8401 3443

The Croydon emergency dental service (Croydent) is available seven days a week for both registered and unregistered patients.

Appointments must be made by telephone between 18:30-21:30.

Forms and Letters

Doctors filling in forms (eg insurance claims) or writing letters during surgery causes delays for other patients. Please allow at least five working days before collection of any completed forms or letters. A charge will be made for any forms filled or letters written not covered by the NHS.

Referrals to Specialists

Family doctors undergo specialist training before going into practice. They are able to deal with many more problems outside hospital than previous and have access to many special tests and investigations. The doctors will discuss with you the need to be referred to a specialist. In this way more patients can receive the treatment they need quickly outside hospital, and those who really need hospital treatment can be seen sooner.

New Patient Registrations

New patients wishing to register with the practice can complete a pre-registration on line form or by speaking with our Reception team. It is practice policy to accept registrations from patients who live within the practice catchment area. All new patients over five years of age should attend a registration health check with a health care assistant.

Teaching

We are a training practice with medical students, nursing students, GP Registrars and Foundation Year 2 doctors. Sometimes patients may be asked if they are willing to participate in teaching sessions. This provides invaluable experience to the medical students.

If a medical student is sitting in with the doctor you will be informed and you can request to be seen without the student being present.

Freedom of Information – Publication Scheme

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. A Publication Scheme is a guide to the ‘classes’ of information the practice intends to routinely make available. This scheme is available from Reception.