Appointments

Configure Appointment Details

How to Make an Appointment

To request a GP appointment, patients may:

Submit their enquiry directly via the online Klinik platform: https://access.klinik.co.uk/contact/unity-health
Telephone the practice or visit reception for a member of the team to complete a Klinik form on their behalf
Call in at one of the surgeries to use one of our iPads to complete the Klinik form

Please note that all appointment requests go through the same online system and are triaged in the same way, regardless of whether the form is completed by patients or reception staff. It is helpful if those who do have online access submit their enquires online, keeping the telephone lines free for patients without internet access and those who are more vulnerable.

Klinik is available between 07:30 and 16:00 Monday to Friday. We aim to review all routine queries within 48 hours and urgent queries on the same day. If it is after 16:00 and your issue is urgent, please call reception and a member of the team will assist you.

When Klinik is closed, i.e. out of hours, on bank holidays and occasionally for staff training, you can seek advice from https://111.nhs.uk

All Klinik forms are read by our clinical team to ensure that they are dealt with in the most appropriate manner and appointments are booked with the appropriate person and in an appropriate timeframe. To enable our doctors to manage your concern appropriately, please provide a detailed description of your concern. Forms that do not have sufficient information will be rejected and you will be contacted to provide more information.

Other appointments e.g. appointments with our nursing team, long-term condition reviews and blood tests, can be booked by:

Visiting Patient Access https://account.patientaccess.com, see section 'How do I access Patient Access' below for further information
Calling or visiting reception

Please see ‘Other Enquires and Appointments’ section below for further details, or visit Klinik where you can find further information about these appointments.

For further information about Klinik, please see the 'Frequently Asked Questions' section at the bottom of this page.

Other Enquires and Appointments

Many routine requests and appointments can be arranged online via Klinik or Patient Access.

The table below outlines how best to deal with common queries and requests. You can also call or visit reception for assistance with any request.

Query	What should I do…
I have a query for a doctor	Visit Klinik and select the nature of your query from the options provided. If you are not sure what to select, enter as a “New Problem” https://access.klinik.co.uk/contact/unity-health
I want to know my test results	You can view your test results on Patient Access or the NHS App. For more information visit Klinik and click on “Test Results.” Alternatively, you can contact reception who will be able to inform you if your tests results are normal and/or if a healthcare professional has advised follow-up. If you wish to discuss your test results with a clinician, please complete a from via Klinik or contact reception.
I’m not sure how to manage my health concern	Visit our Health Advice pages: https://www.unity-health.co.uk/health-advice Visit https://www.nhs.uk or https://111.nhs.uk where you can find helpful information about a range of health concerns, including how to self-manage your condition and when you need to see a healthcare professional.
I want to arrange a long-term condition review e.g. COPD, asthma, diabetes, hypertension	Annual reviews for long-term conditions should be made in your birthday month. Please book via Patient Access or contact reception. For more information visit Klinik and select “Long-term Condition Review” For worsening symptoms or new concerns, complete a “New Problem” form on Klinik
I want to book a blood test	Only book if asked to do so by a clinician OR for your routine annual review OR routine medication monitoring. Book via Patient Access or contact reception. If you have been told your blood test is urgent, please call reception.
I want to arrange an NHS Health Check	Only book if you have received an invitation letter. These are booked via Patient Access or by contacting reception. Visit Klinik and select “Nurse and Healthcare Assistant Enquires” for further information.
I want to arrange immunisations	Some immunisations are booked via Patient Access. For any that can’t be booked via Patient Access, contact reception to book. Visit Klinik and select “Nurse and Healthcare Assistant Enquires“ for further information.
I want to arrange travel vaccinations	Travel vaccination appointments are booked directly with reception, however further information is available on Klinik, which you should read first. Visit Klinik and select “Nurse and Healthcare Assistant Enquires” for further information.
I want to arrange an injection appointment	These are booked via Patient Access or by contacting reception. Visit Klinik and select “Nurse and Healthcare Assistant Enquires” for further information.
I want to arrange a contraception appointment	These may be booked via Patient Access, by contacting reception or with the Sexual Health Clinic (https://sexualhealthbucks.nhs.uk). Visit Klinik and select “Nurse and Healthcare Assistant Enquires” for further information.
I want to arrange my smear	Only book if you have received an invitation letter. These are booked via Patient Access or by contacting reception. First visit Klinik and select “Nurse and Healthcare Assistant Enquires” for further information.
I want to arrange a dressing change or suture/clip removal	Contact reception at the earliest opportunity to arrange these appointments.

Home Visits

Home visits are only for housebound pateints and for those too ill to attend the surgery.

Home visits are not for those who do not have transport. It is clinically better for you to be seen at the surgery where we have better facilities, diagnostic aids, and lighting to assess you. Our doctors typically see four patients in the time it takes to do a single home visit.

If you need a home visit, please contact the surgery before 10:30am if possible and give one of our receptionists your details. They will then discuss this with a doctor to determine whether a home visit is appropriate and the urgency of your needs.

If you do need a home visit, this may be with a paramedic or a doctor depending on your needs.

Cancelling an Appointment

If you are unable to attend your appointment for any reason, or the health problem for which you booked your appointment has cleared up, please remember to cancel your appointment.

Cancelling an appointment is easy by either calling the surgery, texting us back when you get your appointment reminder or via Patient Access www.patientaccess.com

We have a large number of people who do not attend their appointments every single week leading to wasted doctor and nurse time and delays in you being able to get an appointment.

Please aim to let us know well in advance if you cannot make your appointment so that it may be allocated to another patient, however even cancelling your appointment with 10 minutes’ notice will enable us to see other patients in need.

Chaperones

The Surgery prides itself in maintaining professional standards. For certain examinations during consultations an impartial observer (a “Chaperone”) will be required.

This impartial observer will be a practice Nurse or Health Care Assistant who is familiar with the procedure and can be available to reassure and raise any concerns on your behalf. If a nurse is unavailable at the time of your consultation then your examination may be re-scheduled for another time.

You are free to decline any examination or choose an alternative examiner or chaperone. You may also request a chaperone for any examination or consultation if one is not offered to you. The GP may not undertake an examination if a chaperone is declined.

The role of a Chaperone:

Maintains professional boundaries during intimate examinations
Acknowledges a patient’s vulnerability
Provides emotional comfort and reassurance
Assists in the examination
Assists with undressing patients, if required.

Parental Consent

When it is not possible for a parent to bring their child to the surgery for a scheduled appointment, written parental consent is required. This should confirm that you are happy for the named representative to bring your child to the appointment on your behalf, be this by a grandparent, nanny or other responsible individual. Please ensure that the representative shows this letter to reception on their arrival to the surgery.

Note: if your child is coming in to see the doctor following a telephone triage call, then provided you have said to the doctor that you will not be attending with your child and explained who will be, this verbal confirmation is sufficient, and no such letter is required.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Unity Health using an online platform to arrange appointments?

Using online platforms in primary care is a national system that has been developed and tested by the NHS Institute. From the end of March 2024, it is a national requirement for all GP Practices in England to have implemented an online system.

Research shows that of all requests for GP appointments; one third need to consult a GP, one third need to be see another healthcare professional and one third do not need to see anyone and can be helped through advice, self-care etc. Using Klinik enables us to ensure that everyone is managed in the most appropriate way, allowing us to manage demand for appointments and ensure that those who are most in need of our services, based on clinical need and assessment by a GP, get an appointment in an appropriate timescale.

Which option should I select on Klinik?

For most appointments, including urgent on the day appointments, select “Appointment - New Problem” and complete the online form.

For ongoing routine issues, select “Appointment - Ongoing Problem”. Please be aware these will be marked as non-urgent, and therefore if your symptoms are getting worse select “New Problem” to enable us to assess the urgency of your new or worsening symptoms.

For other appointments, including long-term condition reviews, blood tests and injections, see “Other Enquires and Appointments” above.

What happens after the online Klinik forms are received?

All Klinik forms are reviewed by our in-house doctors, after which there are several suggestions that may be made:

Telephone call with the most suitable healthcare professional
Face to face appointment with the most suitable healthcare professional
Signposting to appropriate self-care advice
Advice via text message
Redirect care to an external care provider

If an appointment is needed, the doctor will determine the urgency of this and the timeframe in which the appointment should be arranged. You will receive a text or phone call from a member of the reception team to arrange this.

Appointments may be arranged for the same day, in the coming days or up to 2 weeks in the future (unless there is a clinical need for this to be greater than 2 weeks) depending on the clinical urgency.

Why can’t I access Klinik?

When you first visit the Klinik webpage there may be a red warning box stating the opening times of Klinik. Use the (X) button to close this box, then read the information and scroll to the bottom of the page and press continue.

Klinik is available between 07:30 and 16:00 Monday to Friday. It is closed outside of these hours, on bank holidays and occasionally for staff training, during which time you can seek advice from https://111.nhs.uk or call 111. It closes at 16:00 each day for patient safety, to ensure all requests can be triaged before the end of the working day. If it is after 16:00 and your issue is URGENT and cannot wait until the next working day, call reception and a member of the team will assist you.

Very occasionally we need to close Klinik early due to excess demand, in this situation call reception if your issue is URGENT and cannot wait until the next working day.

Which healthcare professional will I see for my appointment?

Our healthcare team comprises a wide range of professionals. For day-to-day appointments, you might be seen by a nurse, nurse practitioner, paramedic, physiotherapist, pharmacist, physicians associate or doctor depending on the nature of the problem.

All of our healthcare professionals are specially trained to assess and treat a wide range of heath conditions, meaning you may not always need to see a doctor.

All Klinik forms are read by the clinical team, who will decide which healthcare professional is the most appropriate to deal with your concern.

What if I want to see a particular healthcare professional?

If you have a preference for who you see or speak with, then you can write this on your Klinik form. It will be read by the team and considered when deciding on the most appropriate advice and/or appointment for you.

Seeing the same GP can be important for continuity but can also lead to a delay – the triage clinician will make a judgement on this and may ask reception to book with an alternative clinician. If you choose to wait to see a particular clinician this may lead to a delay in being able to book an appointment since your preferred clinician may not be available due to leave, already being fully booked etc.

Why is the form so long?

It is important that the triaging doctor has as much relevant information as possible to ensure that you get the correct help in the correct timeframe.

It is unfortunately not possible for the form to adjust to every individual person. If there is a box you don’t know how to fill you can write “not applicable” or “NA” to allow you to move on, however remember that sufficient clinical information is required to appropriately triage your request.

What if I’m not happy with the appointment I have been offered?

It may not be possible to give you exactly the appointment you want, but, through the clinical triage system, we aim to ensure that all patients are given the healthcare advice they need in an appropriate timeframe.

If you have been offered an appointment that you are not happy with, for example with the healthcare professional or timing of the appointment, please complete a new Klinik form (entering as a new problem). Please explain your concern, providing more clinical information if required and this will be reviewed by the triaging clinician.

How do I access Patient Access?

Before you first log in for the first time you will need to register for an account with reception. You will require photographic ID and proof of address to do this. You cannot register on behalf of someone else. If you wish to register for your child, or a vulnerable adult for whom you hold Power of Attorney, please discuss this with reception so they can arrange ‘proxy’ access for you.

If you are struggling to access your Patient Access account, visit the Patient Access Support Centre via https://support.patientaccess.com

Page last reviewed: 29 November 2022
Page created: 29 November 2022

Appointments

All requests for a GP appointment or query, including urgent on the day appointments, are arranged via Klinik our online platform. Please click on the link below to request an appointment:

https://access.klinik.co.uk/contact/unity-health