Appointments

Consultations are by appointment and can be booked in person at reception, by calling 01476 578252 or on line. There are two types:

Routine appointments are available for patients to see their doctor of choice.

Emergency appointments are for genuine urgent cases. The doctor will only deal with the immediate problem and patients wishing to raise other matters will be asked to book a routine appointment.  Sometimes the Practice may operate a telephone triage system for patients with urgent problems.  The receptionist will take your contact details and a brief description of your problem and the duty doctor will call you back and assess your condition. You may be offered an appointment at the Practice with the appropriate clinician or given telephone advice as appropriate.

Nurse Practitioners

In a number of cases it might be worth considering an appointment with a practice nurse rather than a doctor. Nurse Practitioners are qualified to deal with many ailments and you may be seen more quickly.

Telephone Advice

If you feel that your problem could be dealt with over the telephone please call 01476 571166 and leave your details with Practice.  You will be informed when the Doctor will call you back.

Chaperone Policy

In certain circumstances during an intimate examination a doctor may ask a trained chaperone to be present. This is to protect both the doctor and patient. If a suitable chaperone is not available an alternative appointment will be offered. A patient may of course be accompanied by a friend or relative at any appointment.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the slot to someone else. We now have a appointment cancellation option on our telephone system which means you can leave a message at any time.  Patients who persistently fail to attend appointments without prior notice will be removed from the practice list.

Home Visits

Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible. In this respect, if you do need a home visit, you can help us by calling reception between 08:30 - 10:30.

You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. Your GP will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it and will also decide how urgently a visit is needed. Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)

We are pleased to be able to offer our patients access to routine, pre-booked appointments at evenings and weekends from Monday 10^th September.

The new service is part of an extended access service which has been commissioned by NHS South West Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group.

Extended hours run between 18:30 and 20:00 weekdays and 09:00 and 12:00 Saturday and Sunday and are available on bank holidays and across the Easter, Christmas and New Year periods.

Appointments are for pre-bookable, non-urgent consultations with GPs and Nurses and Physiotherapists. 

The service is being delivered at the St Peter’s Hill Surgery and managed by a federation of GPs in the Grantham area. This means that your appointment could be with a health professional from any of the federation practices.

To arrange an appointment, please speak to your practice receptionist.

When booking an appointment you will need to consent to a Consulting Clinician that may not be your own GP viewing and updating your health record.

Important things to remember

1. These are pre-bookable and not urgent, acute ‘on the day’ matters
2. Booked in advance through your own GP reception
3. May be with a health professional from any of the federation practices
4. At St Peter’s Hill Surgery, 15 St Peter's Hill, Grantham NG31 6QA
5. Extended Access hours are between 18:30 and 20:00 weekdays and 09:00 and 12:00 Saturday and Sunday
6. These appointments are additional capacity across the federation practices
7. If you would like more information please ask at reception