All appointments are being triaged - this means that people with the greatest need are being seen first. What is Triage? The Duty doctor will assess every phone query and decide who needs to be seen in person, who needs a phone consultation, who needs to be seen via video and who can be directed to a community pharmacist etc.
How do we triage? Duty clinicians will look at all the information available and make an assessment loosely based on:. Why do receptionists ask personal questions? Put simply, because they have been asked to! Anyone that is tasked with answering a call at a GP practice must maintain strict confidence and only ask questions to help you get the right treatment. Consult is an online way of contacting your doctor to get help and support.
There is lots of information that you can use to help yourself too. Topics include: What to think about before expanding in-person care. Preparing staff and physical office space. Developing a safety plan. A surgery might be referred to as "elective" in medical terminology, but that doesn't mean they're optional, just not immediate emergencies -- for instance, cataract surgery, hip and knee replacements, mastectomies and even organ donations can be classified as elective.
For many hospitals, there's already a huge backlog of patients that need care. Doctors on staff will need to determine the cases that should be seen first. They'll likely defer to the categories -- and even a new scoring system -- outlined by the leading surgical associations to help doctors determine the level of urgency and risk.
Naturally, there are some grey areas. Medical experts weigh the following questions when deciding whether it makes sense to deliver care now or hold off:. A joint statement from the American College of Surgeons, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the Association of PeriOperative Registered Nurses and the American Hospital Association, warns that hospitals should not resume rescheduling elective procedures until they see "sustained reduction in the rate of new COVID cases in the relevant geographic area for at least 14 days.
The associations also advise administrators that the facility should have an appropriate number of beds, and that medical workers should have access to personal protective equipment and ventilators. Some states will meet the thresholds as they reopen, but others will not.
And even when they reopen, patients might not show up. Ultimately, medical experts say, doctors will need to be upfront with their patients about the risks. Otherwise, they might not seek care that they need. Jonathan Gleason, who is the executive vice president of clinical advancement and safety at Jefferson Health in the Greater Philadelphia Region.
There are now appointments with GPs and nurses available to book outside of the standard GP practice opening hours. Ask at reception for availability. Tuesday 24th December — open as usual. Friday 27 th December — open as usual. Monday 30th December - open as usual.
Tuesday 31st December - open as usual. When the surgery is closed the telephone answering machine gives the contact number for the out of hours service. In the case of urgent need when the practice is closed you can call NHS Your needs will be assessed and advice offered or arrangements made for you to see a doctor.
This service is free to call from landlines and mobiles. Please do not ask to see a doctor out of hours unless you genuinely cannot wait until the surgery re-opens.
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