GP: I’m not doing a number on patients

Apr 16 2008 East Kilbride News

PATIENTS at an East Kilbride doctors’ surgery have been assured that a new telephone system will not hit them in the pocket.

Dr Ian Chisholm’s practice at the Alison Lea medical centre in Calderwood is set to introduce a new phone system in an attempt to improve the service for patients.

From May 1, people phoning the surgery will call a number starting with 0845, as opposed to the previous local prefix.

This sparked fears among patients as 0845 numbers cost more than the local rate and often put callers through to a call centre.

Additionally, in many cases the recipient of the call can make a profit, although this won’t be the case at the practice.

Dr Chisholm this week insisted the charges will remain roughly the same and claims patients will see the benefits.

He said: “We are introducing the number from May 1 as part of a new telephone system that will allow us to answer patients' calls faster and more effectively. This is in response to comments from our patient satisfaction survey about how easy it is to contact the practice by phone. With the old system some patients were finding the line frequently engaged. The new system allows calls to be directed appropriately so they are dealt with more efficiently and patients can also indicate if the call is urgent.

"The system is being introduced purely in the interests of improving the service to patients and the practice will not profit from it. The cost 0845 calls are charged at BT’s advertised Lo-Call rate and we hope that by directing calls appropriately we can reduce the call time.

“The average overall cost to callers should be broadly similar to before."

It is notable that this decision was taken by the GP himself and not the NHS.

The use of 0845 numbers by the public sector has sparked controversy, with critics claiming that charging details are unclear.

nWhat are your views? E-mail dwynn@s-un.co.uk