At Minster Health we aim to provide a high level of service that constantly adapts and responds to the needs of the people we serve.

We hope that the information in this website will be useful when you need to use our services.

We are constantly looking for ways to improve the methods that are available to access members of our team: if however, you wish to give us any suggestions, please either contact Ms. Di Ruston, the practice manager, or write to us using the 'contact us' post box or  via the 'suggestions box' which is on the reception desk.

There are 5 partners working here, who are supported by a full compliment of other primary health care team workers.

How to best use the services of Minster Health

Routine Appointments:

We operate an 'advanced access' service: this means that we try to see people on the same day they ring for an appointment. We have found that this ensures that more appointments are used, since the rate that people book appointments, yet fail to turn up, is much reduced.

We have some appointments at the beginning and end of each day to try to accommodate those who have fully dairies, but these are limited in number.

There is, of course, a finite supply of appointments available.

• Most are for 10 minutes, with either doctor or nurse
• Double appointments are available, but we try to avoid their use
• Are made either by telephone, direct contact at the front desk
• We are trying to see if e mail and letters will also work

We recommend that you try to see the same doctor / nurse with any given illness.

Please remember that each appointment is timed for one person and ideally one problem only- the doctors don't enjoy running late any more than you enjoy being kept waiting.

If you are unable to keep an appointment, please cancel it as soon as possible, so that it can be given to someone else: even one hours notice can normally be filled by someone with an acute problem.

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Urgent problems:

If you have a very urgent problem, which you fear may be life threatening, you should phone 999 and ask for the ambulance service.

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Home visits:

If you feel too ill to leave home, and wish to speak to the doctor, please phone the surgery - preferably before 10.30 in the morning.

The receptionist will take brief details from you and arrange for the doctor or nurse to ring you back.

Should a home visit take place, please ensure that you are in bed when the doctor visits, so that a full examination can take place

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Out of working hours:

The provision of 'Out of Hours Care': This service has now been taken over by Selby and York PCT: To access this service simply ring their number (01904 621621), and your call will be taken by one of their trained receptionists and passed on. NHS direct is an excellent source of simple medical advice which can be contacted on 0845 4647.

Doctors working out of hours are not in possession of your medical records, and are most unlikely to know anything about you: indeed they often are not familiar with York, so we suggest you use this service only if you feel you have a problem which will not wait.

It is possible to see a nurse without appointment at the 'Walk In Centre', at the front of the building.

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Telephone appointments:

One of the ways that we are researching to deal with the ever escalating requests for doctors appointments, is the use of the telephone; a survey of patients undertaken in 2001, showed that the vast majority of people value this service.

The doctors and nurses can be contacted in 2 main ways:

• Via telephone:
  • Via the triage service: if you would like advice about a problem, before you make an appointment, or if you feel you have a urgent problem, the receptionist will take a few details and arrange for the duty doctor to ring you back as soon as possible.
  • If, for example, you wish to discuss a test result, the receptionist will take your return number, and arrange for the duty doctor to ring you back. If you would rather speak to a particular doctor, this can generally be arranged, however, unless that doctor happens to be 'on duty', that day, it may take one or two days for your call to be returned.
  • When expecting the doctor to call you back, we request that you turn off your ansaphone, and let the practice know if you are going out: if the call is answered by a machine, confidentiality prevents the doctor from leaving a message, unless we have signed permission to do so; In such circumstances the call will not be rung again.
• Via mail either through the 'post' or via E-mail: the doctors will try to reply as soon as possible to these queries.

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Repeat Prescriptions:

You may obtain repeat prescription of certain medicines, once your condition is stable, and the doctor is in agreement.

Your notes will be marked for regular review, and you will be informed when an appointment is needed to see either the doctor or the nurse.

Your repeat prescriptions can be ordered in various ways:

• you may obtain a 'repeat' by simply ticking the box, on the provided order slip, which is on the right hand piece of paper attached to your prescription and placing this in the box in reception. If you enclose a stamped adress envelope we can post the prescrption out to you. please allow at least two days for this service (longer if postal service required)
• several local pharmacies now provide a 'pick-up and deliver' service to their loyal customers
• electronic repeat prescriptions: we now offer a new service brought to you by Pharmacy 2u, a local mail order pharmacy. You can register with them to have your repeat prescriptions electronically requested and posted out to an address of your choice. You do not have to come into the surgery if this method is used. For further details you can pick up a leaflet in reception or use the Pharmacy 2u link on our  homepage.

We have been advised not to accept repeat prescription requests via the telephone, to prevent mistakes and the dangers of wrong medicines being issued.

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Health information:

Patient.co.uk is a website written by health professionals with close links to GP surgeries.

It offers many leaflets on medical issues, advice and support, comprehensive information about medicines and advice on healthy lifestyles.

Many of the leaflets available on the webiste are also available in your GP surgery.

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