The Vale Medical Centre Reviews Summary

Staff Interaction

Pros:

• "The GPs and the nurses are helpful and mostly kind."
• "All the nurses and GPs I have seen over the past year have been very attentive and empathetic."
• "But, once connected and talking to a human being I was treated with respect, kindness care, consideration - as I always have been in all my contact with the Vale Medical Centre staff."
• "The reception staff are lovely."
• "I joined this practice over a year ago and all the staff have been nothing but professional and helpful."
• "Doctors are all good here, always friendly and treat u as a human!"
• "The reception staff are absolutely lovely!"
• "Good Doctors and reception staff are on the whole helpful; there's a bloke on reception who is particularly efficient."
• "That is the best Medical practice I ever been, doctors are so helpful and polite and professional."

Cons:

• "Just the secretary in some times don't need to shout in my ears with nervosity at the phone."
• "Charlotte Weston is condescending and extremely rude!"
• "The practice nurse who is Indian (Jones) is very patronising and condescending."
• "The rudeness and aggressive response of the receptionist is what you do not want to be faced with when you are dealing with serious health problems."
• "Very rude staff. They treat patients as livestock."
• "Was bullied directly and indirectly by this doctor's surgery."
• "A receptionist that I spoke to was incredibly dismissive, unhelpful, rude and even lied about things said in a prior phone call that we had."
• "Doctors are nice , receptionist are friendly. However recently I had a horrible smear test with a nurse(?) called JONES! Avoid her in any case no compassion , she's like a butcher , treats you like a piece of meat!!"

Appointment Booking

Pros:

• "The new system is much better to navigate when getting an appointment."
• "When calling up in the morning for an appointment usually end up about 20 in queue and in most instances (provided there are no GPs off sick) can get an appointment for that day."
• "Maybe it was luck, but I found a telephone appointment on patient access one evening, booked it, the nurse called me when they said she would, booked me the next week for some tests, and then got the results via text; I didn't even need to call up again."
• "So far my experience has been great! I was very well cared for when I had covid, receiving a blood oxygen monitor the day after I reported my result, and regular check ins with the doctor."
• "I've never had a problem getting an emergency same day appointment."
• "Doctor was helpful during triage call that I booked online."
• "Yes it's busy like all GP surgeries but you can book appointments for the next day online the night before (released around 7.30pm) or call first thing."
• "In desperation, you can also queue outside before opening to be seen immediately which I've done a couple of times."

Cons:

• "Last time this appointment was done by the phone instead of being face to face."
• "To book an appointment with your doctor cannot be done by phone."
• "It is very hard to get an appointment."
• "I waited for nearly 30 minutes to speak to someone."
• "Impossible to get a follow up appointment after taking weeks to get the first."
• "It is impossible to get through to the reception team to book an appointment but when you do, after a 45+ minute wait, you are told all the appointments are booked up."
• "The worst, rude receptionists, there are never appointments available or you call and you are in the queue on number 40."
• "Called at 0800 (their opening time) for an appointment. Number 38 in the queue, on hold until 0850 when I was told that there were no appointments left."

Treatment and Prescription Handling

Cons:

• "They do some mistakes each month with my treatment prescription."
• "I started to feel really bad since. Zero support but you torture people instead."
• "Might be worth mentioning the medication in question is for anxiety and depression!"
• "The doctor casually redirected us to check with the pharmacist instead via a text message!"

Data Privacy and Systems

Cons:

• "It's now literally impossible to make a GP appointment without giving over all your data to a private company headquartered in another country."
• "Looking after your health has never been more excruciatingly difficult."
• "The hold music plays in my nightmares."

Online and Other Services

Cons:

• "However, I’m left disappointed about how they book appointments. They don’t give the option to reserve it the next day."
• "You call at opening time you're number 49 in the queue."
• "The website is not working and when trying to book online, the password never works."
• "It is outrageous, login to Patient Access at 9pm there was only one slot provided, by the time entered the reason it was taken."
• "So I tried registering through Patient Access, but they put my data incorrectly or didn't put them at all in 3 years I am with them, hence I can't even register there."
• "Rely too much on online services that often don't work (2 out of 3 times I've tried). Long-winded booking system that requires patients to wait to try to book appointments online after a long wait and with no guarantee that they'll get one or that the system will work."

General Practice Feedback

Pros:

• "There are some very good doctors, the surgery is probably short in staff with a lot to do."
• "It's really a good surgery practice."
• "I feel very lucky to have this as my surgery."
• "The best surgery in Lewisham!"

Cons:

• "I’ve changed my doctors twice since joining and I’m not even the type to complain. I’ve never written a review for a service before. It's the first time I feel so pushed by the unprofessionalism that I feel the need to warn people."
• "The level of care is almost non-existent."
• "Unfortunately they are more concerned with avoiding making mistakes (for liability reasons) than with the well-being of their patients."
• "They are a disgrace and a danger to the general public!"
• "If you value your health go somewhere else!"
• "Very poor. Can’t get hold of them. Appointments impossible. Fob you off when you get one. Not interested in you at all."
• "This has to be the worst doctors I have ever experienced!"