Patient Charter

It is our aim to provide a professional and caring medical service of the highest quality and to work together to meet the needs of our patients and community.

 

Our Responsibilities To You

  • The practice will provide and maintain premises that are clean, comfortable, safe and are easily accessible to all our patients including those with mobility difficulties or special needs.
  • The patient will be treated as an individual and will be given courtesy and respect at all times. You have the right to be treated with confidentiality.
  • The practice will offer same-day consultations, to all patients, by appointment. We will ensure that you can have a non-urgent appointment with the doctor of your choice. However, there may be a delay involved before this is possible.

image of a smiling doctor

image representing a patient charter

  • Clinicians will aim to see you within 15 minutes of your appointment time. Nevertheless, delay is sometimes unavoidable, particularly in the case of emergencies. When this happens we will try to keep you informed.
  • A home visit will be arranged if appropriate if you are too ill or infirm and unable to be brought to the surgery.
  • The practice will ensure that a doctor is on call at all times.
  • The practice has the right to remove patients from their list if they repeatedly and persistently ignore their responsibilities to the practice and to other patients.
 

Your Responsibilities To Us

  • Please let us know if you change your name, address or telephone number.
  • We ask that you treat the doctors and practice staff with the courtesy and respect that you yourself would expect.
  • Please only request home visits by the doctor when you really are too ill to get to the surgery. Most children can be brought to the surgery quite safely by car or taxi. The less time a doctor spends travelling, the more time is available for patients. Please remember that night visits are for emergencies only.
  • Please do everything you can to keep appointments and to be punctual. If you cannot attend please let us know as soon as possible, otherwise other patients may need to wait longer. Please make more than one appointment if you want more than one patient to be seen.
  • If the doctor or nurse is running late, please be patient. On another occasion it may be you that needs the extra time and attention.
  • A patient should not expect to be given a prescription at every visit to the doctor. Please check your existing supplies before ordering repeat prescriptions.
  • Please remember that your doctor of choice may not always be available due to other commitments and holidays.
  • Please remember that you are responsible for your own health and the health of your children and that we are here to give our professional help and advice.
  • If a patient is unhappy with the practice, or the service provided, he/she has the right to leave the list and register with another practice.
 

Confidentiality 

Personal information is requested so that we can give you appropriate care and treatment. This information is recorded both on the computer, for which we are registered under the Data Protection Act 1998 and General Data Protection Regulation 2016, and in your written medical record. We will ensure that patient confidentiality is maintained at all times by all members of the practice team.

However, for the effective functioning of a multi-disciplinary team, it is sometimes necessary that medical information about you is shared between members of the team. Prescriptions and some of the consultation records are run purely on the computer which enables us to analyse various aspects of healthcare and to produce an annual practice report.

confidentiality

 

Primary Care Trust

The Farmhouse Surgery is included in the area governed by Dorset PCT. The PCT can be contacted at:

NHS Dorset
Vespassian House
Bridport Road
Dorchester
DT1 1TS

Tel: 01305 368900
Fax: 01305 368947
Email: email@dorset-pct.nhs.uk

 

Freedom Of Information

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. This is a guide to the 'classes' of information the practice intends to routinely make available and it is available on request.

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