Appointment agony: Leonora's fight for care
Leonora, 50, is a therapist from Plymouth.
She needs to have regular appointments with her GP. But since changing surgeries in 2018, Leonora has struggled to get an appointment in person. Her care is mostly managed via phone or text message, not a face-to-face conversation or discussion.
“In the last six years, I’ve only seen a GP in person once,” Leonora told us. “And after a few minutes in the consulting room, they actually opened the door to usher me out.”
Leonora has decided to delay an operation because she was unable to discuss her concerns with a GP. But, Leonora explained, even getting in touch with a GP is a struggle.
“You need to book via a webform that opens at 7:30 in the morning,” she said. “But because of the shift pattern I work, I don’t normally get up until later in the day. 7:30am is like the middle of the night for me. And even then, the appointments all get booked up very quickly.”
After trying for several days to get an appointment online, Leonora will contact NHS111 for help. They will then urgently refer her for an emergency appointment with the surgery.
This is the pattern she now follows to get a phone call or text from the surgery – a process that is restricting Leonora’s ability to get the care she needs.
“The whole system is not fit for purpose,” she said.
