Home visits are for those patients who are housebound or undergoing end-of-life care and therefore cannot get to the Practice. In the time taken for the doctor to do one home visit he could see 5 to 6 patients at the surgery. For this reason it is in the doctor’s and the patient’s best interests that, whenever possible, an effort is made to get down to the surgery. This does sometimes mean patients having to wait a while, but efforts are made to see people as soon as they arrive if their condition so dictates.
Request for a home visit should be made before 10:00 am, and the receptionist will need to be given a brief outline of the problem. Please ensure you give the receptionist your name, address and telephone number. It is very important to inform the receptionist if you are not staying at your home.
The GP may telephone you first to discuss your home visit request and from the information provided the doctor will then decide what action to take next.