PATIENTS of Wellington Medical Centre were seeing their GP quicker and were able to have more telephone appointments since a new triage system was introduced in January, the patient’s participation group (PPG) was told.

There had been 22,628 triages, of which 19,584 were medical, while the remainder were administration requests which were all cleared on the day.

There was an increase to 19 per cent in use of the NHS app, while triage forms completed via the website went up from 17 per cent to 29 per cent, resulting in the use of reception falling from 69 per cent to 53 per cent.

PPG chairman Veronica Tatnall said: “These trends are encouraging and show that the phone and reception have become easier to contact and resources allocated fairly.

“A number of patients going through reception will still be triaged and treated in the same way as if the NHS app was used.

“Triage using the app starts at 7.30 am but messages cannot be sent out of hours due to the medical responsibility that the triage system entails.

“Patients are definitely seeing a GP quicker and there are more GP appointments over the telephone.

“Unfortunately, at present it is not possible to give a definite time for a booked telephone call but you can track the status through the NHS app.”

Mrs Tatnall said regular blood tests or questions on prescriptions could be routed through the administration form online or in reception.

A six-week ledger was presently run for blood tests and a four-week ledger for GP appointments.

Mrs Tatnall said the medical centre was proud to have one of the highest uses of the NHS app in the Somerset area, and plans were being made for another digital support event in September.

The PPG heard feedback on pharmacy issues was mixed, but some people were reporting much quicker service, depending on the time of day.

Boots still held a lease on its premises at the medical centre, which did not expire until December, 2025, and had a covenant that it must be used in a medical capacity.

Practice manager Lydia Daniel-Baker reported between January to May 24,209 telephone calls were answered, 6,500 outgoing calls were made, and more than 24,000 prescriptions were issued in March alone.

She said the practice had achieved ‘Veteran Accreditation’ and a new sign would shortly be displayed.

With lots of veterans in the area having unmet needs in terms of mental and/or physical health they could be signposted for additional support.

The practice was aware of privacy issues in reception but did not have any answers although patients could always ask to speak privately in a side room.

A suggestion had been that music could be played, but it would require a licence which would cost more than £5,000.

The PPG’s next meeting would be the annual meeting to be be held in the medical centre on July 8 at 2.15 pm when all patients of the practice would be welcome to attend.