Havens Health / Meridian Surgery

This is a timeline of my liaison with Meridian Surgery since last Monday.

Day 1 Monday 26th
Called doctor held for 20 mins to be told call back at 2pm as the system doesn’t work during lunchtimes to book appt as they are locked out the system . I could not get through the rest of the day

Day 2 set up online callback request received an email that I would receive a call by 630 next day ...

Day 3 no call received and surgery constantly engaged

Day 3 Set up another callback request online

Day 4 rec callback. Sent pics through at request of doctor for a diagnosis etc

Day 5
text sent by doctor at 9am to say prescription sent to pharmacy

Day 5 Called pharmacy to check ...no prescription

Tried to call doctors constantly engaged

Pharmacist chased up with doctors

Doctors called to say prescription had not been signed by doctor and hadn’t been been sent

Requested urgent follow up for doc to sign and why had I rec text to say had been sent receptionist was dismissive and would not confirm this would be done urgently.

15.03pm five days later still waiting

Called pharmacy prescription still not through

Called doctors 3 times constantly engaged then got through and held with no response

I still don’t have my prescription at 16.55

Called doctors at 17.01 engaged . Called again held for 10 mins with no signs of response .

Doctors have a duty of care and this surgery is failing miserably . This isn’t about resources available it is about attitude and communication

Being told they can't do it as a Government directive, so even less inclined to believe Government hype that the NHS is open , apparently only if you have selective conditions. 24 calls to surgery to get through, 48 minutes on hold before actually speaking to a person.

I tried to call Tuesday to get an appointment, in excess of 200+ calls to get through. I tried e-consult which told me i needed to see a dr. Couldn’t get through, emailed the surgery, got a phone call back, was told I already have an appointment for Friday, to which I explained that this was a different more pressing issue, offered an appointment for that afternoon with a nurse, I then got a phone call back earlier than anticipated, wasn’t impressed, just told to take pain relief and come back in a few days if no better. I have ongoing issues with lupus.
Wednesday I started having some chest pains in the afternoon which I was sure was heartburn, but given o take medication to prevent this I was a little concerned. Couldn’t get through, in the end i called 111 who couldn’t give me an appointment until after hours. I tried the drs again, finally getting through to the queueing system at 5.40pm, by 6.25 I finally gave up as I know the surgery closed at 6pm. Still no appointment.
I have asked many times over the last month about when I can expect to get my flu vaccine. I have been told that won’t be until November. Friends in other parts of the country who are also vulnerable and under 65 have received their flu jab. Other patients under 65 have posted on local Facebook page about having had their flu jab, I am still waiting for my invite.
I am losing all confidence in being able to get a reliable support given my ongoing health conditions.
I have also been in the surgery with my daughter and needed to speak with my regular dr, I asked at reception to be told I need to call up, despite being in the building. As I walked away i was then told that the dr I wanted to speak with wasn’t available anyway! Not the service I expect as I walk away.
I have also witnessed receptionists refuse to help someone as she wasn’t wearing a face mask despite telling them she was exempt.

All of our local go surgeries have closed down and ternt into vet practices. The two remaining surgeries. Maridian and Rowe have now merged and since then no one can get an appointment there are over 20 patients and the drs quality of care has dropped dramatically.

Can take over 100 plus calls to not get a busy tone and when you do get through you’re on hold for ages again, when you finally speak to someone most of the time apt have gone. The reception and telephone staff are great, but obviously very stretched and over worked and probably deal with abuse that’s out of their control. Having 1 GP practice for the population size is ridiculous. Things have got significantly worse since the merger and what I can guessing is a havens GP network collaboration. This has to be addressed as a matter of urgency or else people will fall through the cracks and it will impact patient care- especially for the elderly or vulnerable who don’t have access to e consult S1 etc and also for the welfare of the practice reception staff.

They have too many patients and cannot provide any level of decent service . It’s is appalling . Never ably your get through on phone , if you do there is such a long message that as the caller you are paying for . Now the web site , consulting on line is not even working .
Something drastically needs to be done ! This is why people go to A&E for trivial things , they are just frustrated

Its practically impossible to get through to this surgery on the phone - at any time.
They push you to use the e-consult facility instead. I have used e-consult 4 times now (not by choice- believe me), and twice now they have not responded within the promised timeline. This is extremely annoying because You have to stay by the phone for when they deign to call (if at all). It also extends the time you're waiting for treatment.
If they promise to phone back within a stated time,then they should.
This practice is fast becoming a joke.....

The inability to get an appointment, 137 call to be told to call back in the afternoon. Called back and no appointment. The surgery is unable to cope with the patient volume, this is unsafe and patients including my husband now has to inappropriately present to A&E.

With the two surgeries in Peacehaven now merged things have gone from bad to worse and are getting even worse by the week. I had an appointment today made by myself this morning, but when I arrived I was very rudely informed that I was late! There is no way I was late because the time they stated my appointment was, was the time I called. I have also spend a long time discussing an earlier complaint with one of the partners, but he failed to record any of the conversation an hasn't done anything we agreed. I have therefore been accused of lying by the receptionists. I also find it extremely confusing that the admin staff are not allowed to give their names. I have never heard anything so stupid.

Auto renewal prescription service is no longer available, unfortunately I wasn’t told this until I went to collect my prescription on Saturday. Luckily the pharmacist gave me an emergency prescription of 4 tablet (costing me £5!).
My prescription is for citalopram...it cannot be suddenly withdrawn.
I feel as if LDC care more about squeezing as many people into Peacehaven and Telscombe than the health and wellbeing of it’s residents. Luckily my mental health has been stable for sometime due to my regular medication, but if I think back to when I was in crisis I was in a very dark place, and it was due to the care I received from Rowe Avenue surgery that I am here today. My heart goes out to anyone that may be in that place today as trying to get an appointment to see a doctor at this practice takes great resilience....something that is lacking when depressed or anxious. Www.nhs.uk has an urgent mental health helpline I would strongly recommend this whilst waiting for an appointment.