GP Appointments

Patients are able to book a GP telephone appointment during the surgery's normal opening hours of 08:00-18.30, Monday to Friday.  We also offer ‘commuter’ clinics, by appointment only, two early mornings (Tuesdays & Wednesdays from 07:00) and one late evening (Wednesdays until 20:00). These are also telephone appointments. Appointments are opened for booking a week in advance.

If your problem is urgent and there are no available appointments, please inform the receptionist who will pass a message to the duty doctor.

We are also able to offer GP appointments to our registered patients from 18:30-20:00 weekdays and 08:00-20:00 weekends/bank holidays at GP hubs based at Queen Mary's Hospital and Erith Hospital. Please click on the GP Hubs tab above for more information.

ONE PROBLEM & ONE PATIENT PER SINGLE APPOINTMENT

Our standard appointments allow 10 minutes with the doctor and are for only one problem. Please do not save your problems up for one single consultation with the doctor. Doctors cannot safely and accurately deal with more than one problem in 10 minutes. If you require more time or wish to consult about more than one problem then please help us by booking a ‘double appointment’. Examples of when a single or double appointment would be appropriate are as follows:

• Back pain + feeling tired all the time = 2 appointments
• Chest infection + repeat prescription = 1 appointment
• Period problems/menopause + BP check - 1 appointment
• Arthritic joints pain + Depression = 2 appointments
• Depression: please book a double appointment - However, if you are in imminent danger of self-harming, please go to A&E or call the crisis number: 0208 308 3138/39

Please DO NOT ask doctors to advise on medical issues relating to siblings/relatives during consultations not originally booked for them.

BOOK ONLINE (by clicking here for Patient Access online services, otherwise phone 01322 470595 between 8am and 6.30pm Monday - Friday (please note the phone lines are very busy first thing for emergency appointments). 

eConsult

Our eConsult service allows you to:

• Request advice and treatment from our practice online - you will receive a reply by the end of the next working day
• Get self-help advice for hundreds of common conditions

To get started, click here

Practice Nurse Appointments

In some cases it might be worth considering an appointment with a practice nurse rather than a doctor. Practice nurses are qualified to deal with many ailments and you may be seen more quickly.

Training Practice

Plas Meddyg is a training practice, which means that doctors wanting to enter general practice spend time with us to gain the experience they need to become family doctors.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the slot to someone else. If any patient persistently fails to attend booked appointments without letting us know, we will write to them to remind them of their responsibility to the clinical team and other patients. If this behaviour does not change it may result in their being removed from the practice list.

Home Visits

Our doctors are typically able to consult with four patients in the practice in the time it takes to do a single home visit. For this reason, we ask our patients to book a telephone appointment if at all possible. However, if you are housebound or have an illness that prevents you from attending the surgery, we will  arrange to visit you at home.

Home visits will be carried out only when the doctor considers that the medical condition of the patient makes this necessary.  We are unable to guarantee a particular doctor will do a home visit.

If possible, please try to telephone before 10:30 if you think that you may need a home visit.

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.

Our registered patients can be booked for routine GP appointments in GP Hubs at Queen Mary's Hospital and Northumberland Heath Medical Centre from 18:30-20:00 weekdays and 8:00-20:00 weekends/bank holidays. Please note only our fully registered patients can be seen at the hubs.

These appointments should not be used for a follow up appointment, as continuity of care is important, but if you have a non-urgent problem and can’t wait for our next routine appointment, please call our receptionists who will be happy to book an appointment for you.

You will be telephoned by a local GP who will, with your consent, have full access to your medical records and we will receive details of the consultation automatically.

Queen Mary's Hospital

The GP Hub is located in B-Block in the ALD Service department. Please note all appointments have to be pre-booked via the surgery.

Go to the Urgent Care entrance, turn left and go down the long corridor, follow the signs for Dialysis and you will see the GP Hub just before the dialysis unit.

The nearest car park is the pay-and display Car Park 3 on the map below.

Address: Frognal Avenue, Sidcup DA14 6LT

IMPORTANT: If you need to cancel your appointment then please call 020 8269 4120 giving as much notice as possible. Please note this number goes straight to answerphone and is for cancellations only.

Please note that if in the past you have opted out of having a Summary Care Record or Bexley Linked Care local data sharing then the hub GPs will not be able to see you as they will not be able to access your patient record. If you are unsure whether you are opted out, please ask Plas Meddyg Surgery to check before your hub appointment.

If you would like to download a copy of this map, please click here: QMH GP Map

Northumberland Heath

The GP Hub is located in Northumberland Heath Medical Centre and is open from 18:30 – 20:00 (weekdays) and 08:00 – 20:00 (weekends/bank holidays). Please note all appointments have to be pre-booked via the surgery.

The hub is located inside of Northumberland Heath Medical Centre, go to the white door and press the buzzer.

Address: Hind Crescent, Erith, Kent, DA8 3DB

Bus routes:　B12, 229, 469

Trains: The nearest train stations are Erith and Barnehurst, approximately a ten minute walk away.

IMPORTANT: If you need to cancel your appointment then please call 01322 356150 giving as much notice as possible. Please note this number goes straight to answerphone and is for cancellations only.

Please note that if in the past you have opted out of having a Summary Care Record or Bexley Linked Care local data sharing then the hub GPs will not be able to see you as they will not be able to access your patient record. If you are unsure whether you are opted out, please ask Plas Meddyg Surgery to check before your hub appointment.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’, from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)

Thinking of travelling at the last minute?

Hoping to book a fantastic deal on the internet

...... or get a bargain at the travel agents?

That would be great but PLEASE REMEMBER

WE DO NOT HAVE LAST MINUTE APPOINTMENTS.

You should attend the surgery at least 6-8 weeks before

departure.  Why not even come to discuss your intended

travel plans when you book your annual leave?

More information can be found here or visiting the Clinics & Services section of this website