Appointments

PLEASE DO NOT COME TO THE SURGERY FOR AN APPOINTMENT WITHOUT PHONING FIRST.

PLEASE DO NOT USE THE PRACTICE EMAIL TO REQUEST AN APPOINTMENT.

All appointments will be dealt with initially by an "on the day call back" or a pre-bookable telephone consultation with a clinician.

If you phone between 8.30am and 9.30am you will be put in for a call back (Emergency only calls after 9.30am).  A clinician will call you back to discuss your symptoms.  They will then decide if you need to be seen for a face to face appointment.

Urgent Appointments

If you need an urgent appointment, please let the receptionist know you need to be seen urgently and give the reason where possible - this will help us assess and prioritise how quickly you need to be seen.

Please see below for details of how to access appointments:

Nurse and HCA appointments are available to pre book.

GPs/Nurses or Pharmacists on the Telephone

There are times set aside each day when a doctor or nurse is available to consult with you on the phone. You may get a call from one of our practice-based pharmacists, who deal with most of our medication queries.  Please contact us and the receptionist will help you find a suitable time when a clinician of your choice is free to talk to you.

Many patients find telephone consultations useful and convenient as often they are simply seeking advice from the GP or Nurse and do not require a face to face appointment.

Hospital appointments 

NHS Highland are transforming their outpatient programme in order to improve referrals and give patients greater control of their appointments.  Click here for further information.

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.

Video Consultations

We are now offering video consultation. click here to read more

If you have a video consultation booked, please click here.  NHS Attend - Near Me

Right Care Right Place

If we all use NHS services wisely, we can keep well and get the care we need quickly, safely and as close to home as possible

The NHS is under pressure, illnesses are becoming more complicated, the population is living longer and budgets are being cut. GP’s need to spend more time with complex cases and those with chronic conditions. To help with this, your NHS now offers a large number of Community Services and self-care options that you can access, without the need for you to see your GP.    Details of these can be seen below.

Pharmacy first

NHS Pharmacy First Scotland will allow community pharmacies to give people expert help for treating conditions such as sore throats, earache and cold sores, along with common clinical conditions such as urinary tract infections (UTIs). Pharmacy teams offers advice, treatment or referral to other healthcare teams if required.  

Click here to find out more information about Pharmacy First.

Dental and eye issues

Joint or muscle issues

• Do you need help with a joint or muscle problem?
• Is it interfering with your life or work?
• Do you want to know how you can help yourself?

For advice and self care information on MSK issues you can click here 

NHS inform

Further information regarding self-management for various conditions and ailments can be found by clicking here at NHS inform

Home Visits

Home visits should only be requested when it is impossible for you to attend the surgery. Whenever possible, please request home visits before 10:00, as this helps the doctors to plan their daily rounds. Please be prepared to give brief details of the problem to the receptionist so that the urgency of your request can be relayed to the doctor. If there is any uncertainty about your request, the doctor may first telephone you to discuss the problem further before deciding, with you, that a visit is required.

It would be appreciated if you could attend the surgery whenever possible, as home visits are very time consuming.

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.

Clinical Photography

You may be asked to send in a photography by a clinician.  If a member of our team has asked you to send a photograph, please follow the guidelines below and complete the Clinical Photography Consent Form 

• Photographs should not be taken of skin issues if they will expose the breasts (in females) or groin/genital area (all patients) – please bear in mind that photographs will be seen by administration staff
• Photographs should be clearly focused
• Take the photograph as close up as possible with a measuring tape or ruler placed next to the affected area to allow size to be determined
• Check that the photograph gives a good representation before uploading it

Please ensure all images are in either JPEG/JPG or PDF format for us to be able to download them.

Please attach your consent form with your photos and send to:

nhsh.gp55709-admin@nhs.scot

The images sent in will be stored on the practice’s secure clinical document management system and will be managed in accordance with GDPR regulations.

Teaching & Training

The Practice has a strong commitment to training and education of both new doctors, and existing staff.  We ask for your patience and understanding with this and please remember, its purpose is to provide you with better care.

There may be occasions when the practice is closed for teaching purposes - we will try to give as much notice as possible in order to reduce inconvenience to patients.

Video Recording of Consultations

From time to time you may be asked if you would agree to undertaking having your consultation recorded on video. Rest assured that at all times this is entirely voluntary, and your care will not in any way be prejudiced if you decline to do so.

Your written consent will be sought both before and after the consultation. The camera is unobtrusive, and you will very quickly forget that it is present. At no time will recording cover any intimate examination or similar.

The purpose of the video-recording is for the education and /or assessment of the health professional involved. It enables us to check that consulting style and content is appropriate, and is extremely useful for ensuring good clinical practice.

GP Registrars

These are fully qualified doctors, usually of several years, who already hold experience of medical practice within the hospital setting. They are undertaking a year or more of training specifically in General Practice. They are supervised by a doctor within the practice at all times. 

Medical Students

Occasionally we have a medical student present with the doctor during consultation watching him/her working. We will always ask if you mind having a student present when you see the doctor. If you are not happy then the student will leave. Do not hesitate to tell us. We know it can be difficult to speak to the doctor when someone else is there.

At some stage, once the student has some experience, then we may ask you to speak to the student first, then the doctor will come in and see you.

Foundation Year Doctors

Occasionally we have a foundation year doctor working alongside us. This will be a qualified doctor in their first year of employment who will work directly under the supervision of one of the partners.

Specialist Trainee 1, 2 and 3

We often have a qualified specialist trainee doctor working with us. They normally have several years experience in hospital work and are with us for 12 to 18 months to complete their GP training.

Chaperone Policy

You are very welcome to be accompanied by a trusted friend or relative at your consultation if you wish, and this is all the more important if English is not your first language, or if you feel you might not be able to express what you need clearly to the clinician you will be seeing.

In addition, for intimate examinations, you may wish the choice of having a trained member of the practice team be present at the examination. This is called chaperoning.

If we can’t allocate a chaperone when you wish one to be there, then we can reschedule your examination to another time.

Clinical Photography consent form

Patient Registration form

Pelvic Physio Self-referral form

Smoking Cessation Self-referral information

Podiatry Self-referral form

Primary Care Mental Health forms  Core 10  and  PHQ 9 and GAD 7

Home BP monitoring form

Click here for more information on how to do your own BP at home How to take your own BP at home