Balfour Medical Centre
2 Balfour Road, Grays, RM17 5NSContact details and opening times
Patient ratings and reviews
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Reviews
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Review titled Good Care
Rated 4 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 27 June 2024
I visited the surgery and they taken care very well. I was sick not able to call and when I walked in they helped me to book an appointment
Visited June 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Excellent surgery
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Kate Blake - Posted on 11 April 2024
Always a super high level of care by all clinicians & admin staff at this surgery. All go above & beyond. Like any Drs you have to ring first thing for an appointment, but it’s rare that I haven’t been able to get one the same day. Never any rush when you have an appointment, the medical team there are always very thorough. At our appointment today we saw the clinician & the Dr to make sure that the best possible treatment was being offered for my daughter. Keep doing a great job Balfour Medical Centre!
Visited April 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Awful telephone system
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 29 February 2024
I have called every morning at 8am to speak to a Dr regarding my medication. Every morning I am waiting to get through for 30 minutes only to be disconnected by an awful automated system. Been doing this since Monday, it’s now Thursday and still not spoken to a receptionist let alone a Doctor. Utterly disgraceful and a waste of tax payers money. Please please update this awful automated telephone system, it isn’t working. I have generally had good experiences with this surgery but a couple of the receptionists need to turn the attitude down a notch.
Visited February 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Locum disagreed with information on NHS website
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 09 February 2024
Submitted econsult for common menopause symptom which is easily treatable but would make a massive difference to my life, (currently waiting to be seen by HRT clinic but has a minimum 36 week wait for initial appointment!) Received text saying I needed to book telephone appointment! Locum GP said cream would interfere with HRT treatment, (I have at least another 5 months to go just to be seen). The cream doesn't interfere with HRT at all as is a 'local' cream. I mentioned it says this on NHS website but Locum insisted this must be wrong! Locum then said they would consult with colleague, (so they have no knowledge of a major life event that affects 50% of population) and would call me back. 1 hour+ later they called back to say they wouldn't prescribe treatment, and I would need to get a second opinion when I said I was disappointed with their response. I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall and slowly going mad, not only am I suffering physically and mentally but I'm battling with my local practice it feels like. I've been with them 26 years and I've noticed a decline in service. They just want you to go away!
Visited February 2024
Balfour Medical Centre has not yet replied.
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Review titled Receptionist Practices Need Overhaul
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 27 April 2023
The receptionists never answer the phones but you can’t get an appointment any other way apart from econsult. Every time I’ve been in the surgery they do not answer phones, it’s not that the line is busy, it’s that they aren’t doing their job. If you can only make an appointment by calling the phone lines need to be open all day. Ineffective administration is poorly impacting patients health and it needs to change. I’ve been calling for over a week for a telephone appointment. Doesn’t matter what time of the day, I’m not successful. It shouldn’t be impossible to get an appointment. If it’s something serious it won’t be picked up in time.
Visited April 2023
Review titled Balfour Medical Centre
Replied on 21 October 2024
Thank you for your feedback regarding your experience with our appointment system. I apologise for the difficulties you’ve faced in trying to reach our reception team and book an appointment. I have recently joined Balfour Medical Centre as a Practice manager and am looking into areas for improvement. I understand how frustrating it can be when phone lines are not adequately attended. Our aim is to ensure that every patient can access the support they need in a timely manner, and I’m sorry that we have fallen short in your case. We have currently reviewed our staffing and operational procedures to enhance our services. It is essential that our reception team is available and responsive and therefore, we have recruited new NHS experienced receptionist in October 2024. In the meantime, I encourage you to utilise the eConsult service for non-urgent matters, as it is designed to provide an alternative method of communication. However, I completely agree that access to phone appointments should not be a challenge. If you would like to discuss this further or if there’s anything I can do to assist you, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Your health is our priority, and we are committed to making necessary changes to better serve you and all our patients. Thank you once again for your valuable feedback. Best regards, Diljit Kaur Practice Manager Balfour Medical Centre
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Review titled Very bad receptionist
Rated 3 stars out of 5
by Ola - Posted on 29 March 2023
Getting an appointment in the morning is almost impossible to see a doctor because you will be on the phone for over thirty minutes only for someone to pick up the phone and practically tell you to be sensible and go to A and E. I called the surgery on the 23rd of March to see the doctor and I was told the she will call me back later in the day even though I told the receptionist that it was an emergency. I later spoke to the doctor who agreed with me it was an emergency and she promised to send an order out for me to have an ultrasound and do some blood test. When I was picking the form for the blood test, I was told the request for my ultrasound has been sent and I should receive a call asap. I called on the 28th of march to follow. Up on the result 0f my test and to notify the surgery that nobody has called me pertaining to the ultra sound. I spoke to a receptionist who was blatantly rude and told me that I should have used my common sense to go to accident and emergency. I tried to explain to her that I felt it would be a waste of NHS resources and time since I have started dealing with my G.P. But she does not want to hear any of it and before I could say anything, she dropped the phone on me. I went to the surgery straight away and she still told me that my face that she thinks I was been stupid nd that was why she dropped the call. A gentleman later came to attend to me nd who in 2minutes was able to explain to me and apologize. The receptionist does not have any empathy and does not have a quality of a care giver and does not understand what it is like been in pain or when you are afraid for your life or scared of any symptoms deteriorating. I think the receptionists employ for a surgery should understand this is not picking the inquiry phone of an insurance or a mobile telephone company. Patients need to be spoken to with empathy and given reassurance that everything will be fine and not shout them down and insist they must listen to you even though they are trying to explain their condition to you. Thanks and God bless.
Visited March 2023
Review titled Balfour Medical Centre
Replied on 21 October 2024
Dear Ola, Thank you for taking the time to share your recent experience with us. I sincerely apologise for the distress and frustration you encountered during your interactions with our surgery. Your feedback is invaluable, and it helps us improve our services. I have recently joined Balfour Medical Centre as a Practice manager and am looking into areas for improvement. I am sorry to hear about the difficulties you faced in getting the urgent care you needed. It is concerning to hear that you felt dismissed by our reception staff, and I understand how important it is for patients to feel heard and supported, especially in times of distress. Our reception team provides compassionate and empathetic service however, I will address your experience with them to ensure that this expectation is always met with compassion. I appreciate your patience and the understanding you showed when speaking with our team member who later assisted you. We strive to create an environment where all patients feel cared for and valued, and your feedback highlights the areas where we must do better. If you would like to discuss your experience further or have any additional concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly on 01375 373366 (Mrs Diljit Kaur). Your health and well-being are our top priority, and I want to ensure that you receive the quality care you deserve. Thank you again for bringing this to my attention. We are committed to improving our services and ensuring a better experience for all our patients.
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Review titled Bad practice
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 09 February 2023
Been with the surgery for more that 15 years with good Doctors and patients care. But lately I think the receptionists have been changed is now very difficult to get any appointment either pre booked or on the day. You can be on call for 30 mins from 8:00am and at the end the call can be dropped at the other end or be told that no more appointment. I have been on this for more than 3 weeks now. Despite that my appointment supposed to be for a followed up treatment. I think the new receptionists are so lazy to pick calls or schedule appointments for patients. Despite telling them your situation they have no empathy or compassion they can sometimes be rude or careless about the situation. They do direct me to e consult for a follow up appointment. This shows how incompetent they are. I think they need to be given good orientation of how to deal with patients. Doctors at the practice do have good relationships with the patients but these new receptionists are making patients to give the surgery a very bad review. They do not understand that a follow up treatment is important. They need to call them to order They claimed to be fully booked but when you get to the surgery you can hardly see up to 3 people at any time and the doors to the doctors offices are opened with no patient in the room. I think the surgery is not effective and efficient as a result of the incompetent receptionists
Visited January 2023
Review titled Balfour Medical Centre
Replied on 21 October 2024
I appreciate you sharing your concerns with us, and I sincerely apologise for the experience you encountered at our practice. I recently started working at Balfour Medical Centre, and we are currently examining every area that could use improvement. We have recently recruited new NHS experience receptionist to improve our services. We greatly appreciate your feedback as we aim to enhance our services. We sincerely apologise for any discomfort or inconvenience you may have experienced. We appreciate your concerns and assure you that we are dedicated to implementing the necessary changes to avoid similar situations in the future. If you are open to discussing your experience further or if there is anything else we can do to address your concerns, please feel free to reach out to me directly to speak with me. Practice Manager, Diljit Kaur. Balfour Medical Centre