Category: 2.5. Telephone consultations
The Cottage Surgery at Woodhouse Eaves in Leicestershire was set up by Dr Stephen Clay as a one-doctor practice in 2003. To increase capacity and cut waiting times, the doctor uses a system whereby all patients are put through to him when they call. Working together with the patient, he then determines whether or not a consultation is required.
Dr Clay uses variants of this system in two other practices managed by his team. The total number of patients in all three practices is around 10,500. When a patient calls the Cottage Surgery, the receptionist takes a brief note of their name and what the problem is, if they are happy to say so. They are either put straight through to Dr Clay or, if he’s busy, he calls them back at the earliest opportunity.
When he talks to patients, the doctor decides if he needs to see them and if he does, he makes an appointment, usually for that day. If in doubt, he asks them to come in. Phone calls last,
on average, between two and three minutes, considerably less time than a face-to-face consultation. This enables the practice to offer longer appointments to people who need them.
‘I’ve found that 50% of patients don’t need to see a medical professional and only 34% choose to come in and see me,’ he reports. ‘About a quarter just want advice and the other quarter want something that doesn’t involve direct contact, such as a repeat prescription. The remainder see the practice nurse.’ Some patients are not suited to phone consultations, for language or work reasons or because of their particular condition. These patients are identified to reception staff, who book an appointment for them when they call, rather than pass the call through to the doctor.
Dr Stephen Clay
s.clay@thecottagesurgery.co.uk
