Are your surgeries currently being disrupted by requests for acute home visits? Is this having a negative impact on patients, who are waiting longer for their appointments when their doctor is called away? What is the effect on the doctors, who are called away from their routine surgeries?
How long do patients who request home visits have to wait to see a doctor? If it’s more than an hour or two, is this leading to higher rates of hospital admissions? Is it causing patients distress, or is it having an adverse effect on their health?
Think about the different options for providing a dedicated GP for home visits during each practice day. He or she can respond quickly to requests for acute home visits, without disrupting the practice or the patients in the waiting room. You could introduce a duty doctor system: one practice GP who has no booked appointments for the day, leaving him or her free to meet home visit requests quickly. Another option is to collaborate with other practices, by hiring an external doctor whose sole purpose is to make home visits.
Before going to patients’ homes, talk to them on the phone to find out if visiting them is the best course.
Make sure all reception staff and practice managers are familiar with the practice’s policy on home visits, so that requests are channelled effectively.
Are you introducing an acute visiting service or duty doctor system? Think about other activities the doctor could be doing while he or she is not making home visits. These might include visiting nursing homes or making follow-up calls.
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