Sydenham Green Group Practice
26 Holmshaw Close, Sydenham, London, Greater London, SE26 4THContact details and opening times
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Reviews
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Review titled Disappointing practice
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 20 November 2024
Reception staff eating whilst on reception duty when I visited to collect a firm. Telephone staff’s attitude not great when speaking to me about an appointment, telephone line very poor and staffs voice kept fading away and I was having difficulty in hearing what was being said.
Visited November 2024
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 22 November 2024
Dear Patient, Thank you for taking the time to comment on our practice. Without knowing more about when you visited, it is difficult to look into the issues you have raised but if the service you have received was less than it should be I do apologise. If there are more details that you could provide it would be helpful; the practice email address is LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Room for improvement
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 25 October 2024
Whilst I appreciate that the latest on-line booking system is a great improvement on the incredibly poor appointment system that existed in the past - it still isn't good. If you fill in the on-line form you may be told that someone will ring you - no time is given. Many patients have jobs that do not allow them to answer the phone during working hours. You may be given an appointment time - without any choice , many people have jobs that do not allow them to take time off during working hours or at very short notice. If you ring the praccice trying to find a date or time that work will allow it is very, very, difficult and sometimes impossible. Many employers do not accept that is impossible to get a dr's appt before or after work - and it shouldn't be so difficult. Talking to work colleagues who attend other surgeries their experiences seem to be more positive. If you are told by text that a routine appt is all that is necessary and that you will be contacted when anappointment becomes available, my experience is that you are not contacted. The system at the surgery may have improved, but it is still extremely challenging for those of us who can't answer the phone at any time, or attend the surgery at any time, if we wish to keep our jobs!
Visited October 2024
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 29 October 2024
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our practice. While I am please to see that you have noticed an improvement, I understand and share your frustration that there is still work to do to further progress. We are working to expand the clinical team, and support the duty clinicians by expanding the options available to offer to patients, but we are aware that delays can build up and we do try to minimise them as much as possible. I am concerned that you have been triaged as needing a routine appointment but haven't been contacted to arrange this; I would appreciate it if you could let me have more detail so I can look into this. We do offer some appointments after work, including in the evenings and some Saturdays, but the numbers of appointments are considerably lower than during core hours (Monday - Friday 8am-6.30pm) and these appointments do go quickly. We try to expand the offering outside core hours but the 'every day' pressure takes precedence. If you would like to discuss the matter further, please contact the surgery on LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net or 020 8138 2970. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Unprofessional with no empathy for patients
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 29 October 2024
Just registered with your practice, have been a thyroid patient for almost years. My doctor is abroad so I have Tsh tests here in the Uk twice a year and then he can see for my dosage. If I don’t take or take the incorrect dosage it has vital effects as you would certainly know. Today I got a message saying that you can’t carry out my blood tests as my doctor needs to perform them. First, I have never had this from a Gp in the Uk, I have always had great experiences. Second, how do you if I can travel? Maybe I am not able to! Thirdly, how can you take away my right to access health services? Lastly, people without any empathy, should not be in the health sector. Who will be responsible for the side effects I will have now that you don’t allow me to have a blood test?? If I had a chance, I woul give zero stars.
Visited October 2024
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 30 October 2024
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our practice. Without knowing the details of your individual case, I am unable to write a full response; additionally this is not an appropriate forum to go into patient specific details. However, in general, clinicians will work with patients to support their care where it is in line with the roles and responsibilities within the NHS; arrangements shared across clinical teams (where one organisation or clinicians will be responsible for initiating a treatment, while another will be responsible for monitoring their effects) are complex and we are occasionally put in a position of not being able to agree to them without more considered consultation. It is sometime not a simple case of carrying out a test, as without a formal agreement that can impose a duty of care to act on the results that may not be in line with what a different specialist would decide (be they NHS, private or in this case, outside the UK). If you would like to discuss the matter further, please contact the surgery on LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net or 020 8138 2970. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Unprofessional and uncooperative
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 01 February 2024
I had witnessed the reception staff being extremely rude at reception to an elderly patient who was having difficulty booking an appointment online as she did not know how to use the internet properly. The reception had been extremely uncooperative to which i had to step in and book and support her to book an appointment online as she was left in distress. Please don't register with this surgery is you have a mental health diagnosis, learning difficulties or experiencing mental health symptoms as the staff are extremely dismissive and may re trigger vulnerable patients by making them complete several forms over again before they can see a GP. When you do eventually get a telephone appointment the GP will be unaware of the reason for your call despite reliving trauma by writing it on the referral form more than once.
Visited January 2024
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 08 February 2024
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our practice. I am sorry that your experience has been upsetting to you. We are taking many steps to try and improve this, including the triage tool and training for staff, and I hope that this will make things better in the near future. While we do put all patient requests through an online triage tool, we know that for some of our patients this is difficult; for this reason around a quarter of requests are completed on behalf of patients by our reception team. If you would like to discuss the matter further, please contact the surgery on LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net or 020 8138 2970. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Poorly Managed Practice
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 24 November 2023
It’s well nigh impossible to get a face to face appointment. One of the long standing receptionists treats patients as an inconvenience, and seems to forget it’s her job to be patient when people are unwell and can’t get an appointment. The other two ladies are gentle with the right temperament. Fobbing patients off with technology that doesn’t work is irresponsible, I refer to the appointment booking and prescription services. The NHS has some amazing practitioners at all levels, but at Sydenham Green, they seem to have given up. I don’t think they understand the massive impact the first negative interaction at reception and on the phone has. I have dreaded falling ill because I know if I call I’ll be put in a queue of 70 people or directed to an outsourced service or technology that doesn’t work. This has a sizeable impact on a person’s health. I have left this practice and my experience with my new surgery has been completely different. On registration the receptionist noticed a health anomaly and I was seen by a doctor there and then. It was the first time in 5 years that I had a proper conversation with a GP where I wasn’t harried and rushed.
Visited October 2023
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 27 November 2023
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our Practice, and I am sorry that we have lost you as a patient. I understand and share your frustrations with the appointment and phones and we have recently completely changed how we manage patient contact with us, resulting in all patient queries being dealt with on the day by a GP and allocated appointments. It is early days in the new system, but we are seeing positive signs and I hope that the experience for patients will be greatly improved. If you have any more specific feedback, I would appreciate it if you would contact me via the practice - lewccg.sggp@nhs.net Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Improvements
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 05 December 2023
Find it impossible to get through to surgery let alone book an appointment they tell you go on line im a pensioner and sometimes get stuck no one to help you and know one cares on the whole whole establishment could do with overhaul now they telling you you can only go on GP App between 8 and 4 so people dont get sick after those hours and they dont look at anything at weekends complete shambles
Visited August 2023
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 07 December 2023
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our Practice. I understand and share your frustrations with the appointment and phones and we have recently completely changed how we manage patient contact with us, resulting in all patient queries being dealt with on the day by a GP and allocated appointments. It is early days in the new system, but we are seeing positive signs and I hope that the experience for patients will be greatly improved. While we are finding that the vast majority of patients are using the system online, the reception team are completing requests for those who do not have internet access. We are finding that because the numbers using the online system are quite high, reception are able to spend more time with other patients and this has resulted in a considerable drop in the numbers of patients phoning, so that is improving as well. While our main triage system is open up until 4pm, we are working and seeing patients past this up until the time we close. Our weekend opening is in line with what the NHS tells us to do; when we are closed patients are able to use the 111 system which also has the SELDOC doctors available to see patients where needed. If you have any more specific feedback, I would appreciate it if you would contact me via the practice - lewccg.sggp@nhs.net Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Cannot get an appointment.
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Douglas Michael Howard - Posted on 23 August 2023
I have arthritis and I think it has spread to mp hip. I rang the practice at 8.00am and I was told I was 8th in the queue which was encouraging. When I spoke to receptionist I was told there was no appointments available and go to Beckenham Beacon hospital. Not good.
Visited August 2023
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 22 November 2023
Dear Mr Howard, thank you for taking the time to comment on our Practice. I completely understand your frustration with the appointment system and we have been working on a number of ways to try and improve this. As of the start of this month, we have completely changed the way that patients access care here and I hope that it will be considerably easier for you and all out patients from here on. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if there is anything you would like to discuss in more detail, either by phone (020 8138 2970) or email (LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net) Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Impossibile to get an appointment
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 12 July 2023
I have been calling the practice since Monday staying over the phone with an automated voice minim one hour ..today just before one hours the call failed! I called back an other half an hour and when they pick at 9:30 ish no More appointments.
Visited July 2023
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 20 July 2023
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our practice. I appreciate the issues with getting appointments; we are working to increase the size of the clinical team to improve what we can offer to patients but we are aware that it is a struggle, as well as working to design a new booking system as required by NHS England. If you would like to discuss further, please contact either Pamella Greaves (deputy practice manager) or Ed Hillan (practice manager) at LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net to discuss. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Very, very poor
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Peter - Posted on 05 June 2023
It is next to impossible to get an appointment with this practice. Today's experience was by no means unusual. I phoned at 8:00am and was told by the answering machine that I was 19th in line. Twenty minutes later when I was able to speak to a person I was told there were no appointments available. How can it be that there are only roughly one might guess 25 appointments (assuming that some are held back for people who get through the gatekeeping because they have a heart issue or similar)? The receptionist apologised to me but it is clearly not her fault that the provision in place is so inadequate. At the very least the practice could (1) update the answering message to be more accurate in the post covid world; (2) use technology to tell the many people hanging on the line that it is pointless staying on the line when all of the appointment slots are taken; (3) put in place the on line appointment system that is supposed to be in place but isn't. These are simple suggestions that might just make the lives of those that wish to use the service and those seeking to provide it a little easier - albeit there may still not be an appointment at the end of it. Ultimately the surgery has to find a means of providing its service which, from reading reviews and from lengthy personal experience, it has not done for some considerable time.
Visited June 2023
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 20 July 2023
Dear Patient, Thank you for taking the time to comment on the practice. We do understand the pressures with the appointments; there are huge issues with patients getting into the practice and we a re working to address these. We hope to be able to implement changes as suggested by NHS England in the coming months which should improve the patient experience. If you would like to discuss further, please contact either Pamella Greaves (deputy practice manager) or Ed Hillan (practice manager) at LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net to discuss. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager
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Review titled Terrible appointment system
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 02 June 2023
It has been so difficult to book an appointment. Yo are expected to call at 8am to book an appointment to see a GP or a practice doctor on the same or next day. I have been trying for over a week to get an appointment. As I don’t need regular appointments, I don’t always remember how to use the app Ask First which I find quite confusing. However when I do get through to reception, I am asked to use the app for a better service. When I do eventually get an appointment I do hope I am not only given 5minutes. Please can you sort out your processes
Visited June 2023
Review titled Sydenham Green Group Practice
Replied on 20 July 2023
Dear Patient, thank you for taking the time to comment on our practice. I appreciate the issues with getting appointments; we are working to increase the size of the clinical team to improve what we can offer to patients but we are aware that it is a struggle. We are also looking at alternatives to the Ask First app which should be easier for patients to use. If you would like to discuss further, please contact either Pamella Greaves (deputy practice manager) or Ed Hillan (practice manager) at LEWCCG.sggp@nhs.net to discuss. Yours, Ed Hillan Practice Manager