Putneymead Group Medical Practice (NHS) Reviews

After collapsing in the street and been referred back to the gp. It still takes weeks to get an appointment.

Rude, surly reception with serious attitude problem. No appointments available for 3-4 weeks.

Putneymead is not good at all. They got only one world, and that is their own world. They don't listen and they don't care. The online booking service is nothing else than a way to make you write a novel that nobody reads and nobody cares. They NEVER follow up on you. When you get a telephone appointment, and you happen to be at the toilet, they call 3 times within few minutes, and that's it. They NEVER call again, even though you have written in their form what your problems are. When you get an telephone appointment, you will be stuck to you phone waiting ALL DAY LONG, and IF they call you, then you're the lucky one. If they don't call you and you check why, you find out that their system tells that they called, but they did not. Totally useless, even though I have used them for years.

Avoid for all cost! Such a bad performance from Putney mead medical centre. I have been trying to book an appointment while visiting the centre. The receptionist was very unhelpful and informed me that the best way to book an appointment is via phone call at 8 am the next morning. I called the next day at 8 and hanged on the phone till 8:30 when my call was finally answered, just to hear there is no more available appointments and she advised to call at noon the same day. After 12 when I call again the same situation (no availability), I asked her to book an appointment for the next week. She stated there is no possibility as the medical centre does not take appointments for so many days in advance. I wonder what is that clinic for, definitely not for helping suffering patients.

Lovely reception team today. They are so friendly and efficient. Thank you so much for your help!

very very bad service, i found myself struggling with depression and under the advice of a freind sought a doctors help here, i arrived at my appointment (15 minuites early) and was in the waiting room for over an hour, wich i dident mind as i was sure once i was seen it would be ok. the doctor i spoke to kept me for little under 10 minuites, interrupted me half way through me describing my problem and said id gone over the time she had available and had 'other people to see' so she gave me a buisness card for mental health people, wich i rang, and they sent me an online quiestionaier wich i filled out and never heard from them again! it was a really dreadful experience and feel sorry for other people out there who are batteling depression and have no help, support from doctors at places like this where they are just fobbed off. really disgusting.

Incredibly long waiting times for an appointment and also over the phone. It's likely that the practice have taken on far too many patients and are subsequently overwhelmed. Practices like this are likely to lead to patients resting on their laurels rather than getting checked out

Dr Hallum and Dr Andrews were simply marvellous over this last year when my cousin was very frail. They were kind to her and to myself at a very difficult time and I could not phase them more highly and helped enable her to die at home which was what she wanted.

From my previous experience I can honestly say this GP practise has improved greatly. There has been some turn-over of staff - in a good way! My previous contacts where just senseless, and the doctor made it clear that she does not have the time, hence make multiple appointments to have your concerns attended to. And after multiple visits she made it clear she will not assist. Having great concerns about my health for the first time in my life, I took a career break from the NHS and used my savings to attend private specialist consultations.

My recent visit, I was forced to go the GP surgery - paperwork. Hence my expectations where minimal. Dr Potterson and Sr Louise were excellent! Caring, knowledgeable.. just an amazing service. Thank you so much!

Online booking is fantastic and the self registration at reception is very efficient. You are forewarned at registration of delays. Honestly I'd rather wait and have the staff dedicate more time to difficult cases. I'm glad I did not change practises.

Called at 11:51 to make an urgent appointment with a doctor post emergency hospital visit... was told to call at 12.. as they cant help me due to thei booking ststem going online only after 12... called at 12:01 only to receive a message all lines are currently busy call back later and get hang up on.

Amazing service! Fantastic Medical Practice.
Delighted with the service we have received as family of 5 over the past 5 years.

My experience has always been fine bar the waiting times. I did find it preposterous, however, to be told that I must visit the GP surgery in person in order to register for their online appointment service in order to get an appt to visit the GP surgery in person............... I mean really?????

Not great experience for me. Had phone consultation in which the GP told me she wanted to see me asap face to face after this consultation. However, appointment offered required me to take a half day off work that day or be 3 hours late for work the next day and couldn't afford to lose a half day's pay. Having explained I can really only do evenings, the GP told me to call back at 3pm when they release evening appointments for that day. When I called back approx. 2.50pm that day, I got through to a receptionist at approx. 3.05pm and she advised there were no appointments available until 8 days time. The receptionist I spoke to didn't seem to know anything about same day appointments. During this conversation I was finding it difficult to understand what she was suggesting. There was a hint that I could go to a local hospital/walk in centre. She was talking fast and then stopping part way through a sentence. In my personal opinion, I think the reception could have dealt with this better. I was so disappointed I wanted to be able to give feedback. I know that when you get an appointment you get a text to give feedback. I asked if I could get a text so that I could give feedback, and the woman on reception refused. :( All in all not very good if you can't get any appointment. I have since received a call from the doctor's surgery, I suspect because they read this review, and perhaps wanted to resolve this and they have managed to fit me in this evening, for which I am very grateful, but I do feel the constructive feedback I gave on how the receptionist concerned dealt with this needs to be taken on board.

Love this place even tho it's phone system is terrible, reception staff have always been helpful and very attentive to my situation, there's only one person I have an issue with the blond lady with an accent (not Scottish) very rude but I shut her down and haven't dealt with her since, doctors are brilliant considering all the cuts it's amazing how people still find a way to blame the individuals that work there, like it's their fault the Nhs don't provide an adequate phone system!!!

No complaints at all. I've seen most of the GP's (!) and have no criticism whatsoever. Always found this practice completely accessible and thorough;y professional at all times. 5/5.

When you are sick-you are sick! But they do not care much. You need to insist to get some help. GP just do not care.

Terrible service - they never answer the phone, I spent 20 mins on hold and the next available appointments are at least 3 weeks wait. Always get a different answer depending on who you speak to.

Feel very fortunate to be registered as a patient at this surgery. From our experience we have been treated with friendliness and respect by the reception team, nurses and doctors. They have a great nursing team who are informed and thorough with regards to travel advice/immunisations and all the doctors we have seen have an excellent patient manner. When re-registering (following some time away) they expedited my husbands form and he was seen for an appointment on the same day and then booked for further checks on the following day.

I've been with this practice for a number of years & the quality of the reception staff remains very poor re: quality of their information & manner of their interaction particularly on the phone. However, the principal issue with this practice appears to be the inability to get an in-person (or even telephone) appointment quickly. If you think you might need to see a doctor or nurse in 2-3 weeks then book online now; anything sooner / more urgent, you're likely to be plum out of luck in which case I'd recommend visiting your nearest NHS walk-in clinic where the service is likely to be much better than that at Putneymead.

If you wish to experience the NHS no longer coping then join this practice. The appointment system is abysmal. A standard wait for an appointment is 3 weeks. You can't get through on the phone and the online system is complex, how the elderly or anyone with mental health problems or frankly just feeling a bit fragile copes God only knows. Once you have an appointment the continuity of care is a shambles with difficulty in seeing the same doctor and again having to wait another 3 weeks to do so. It is such a shame as before the 3 surgeries merged I couldn't have wished for a better doctors surgery.

Shocked by the standard of care in the UK. Have been dealing with chronic back pain after an incidence 7 months ago. Ive had to fight to be heard and seek help with pain management and have yet to receive a viable option for pain. The doctor is impossible to see in a timely manner. She initially prescribed me with an anti depressant that was meant to help the pain which made me unable to function. I begged them to send me for scans and uncovered two herniated disks. They ve not touched base with me since. They seem very uncaring, rushed, don t deliver any follow-up and wait times are ridiculous.

I would give a 0 if possible. This has to be the worst service I have ever dealt with. If you need anything, they are an absolute waste of time. You re better off making your own remedy than getting help from these guys.

The doctors are good but I don t think their COVID protocol is effective.
- The receptionists have always been rude but now they are rude and unable to give appointments.
- The doctors don t want to see patients for fear of coronavirus.

Clearly their 2 priorities are protecting their staff from catching the virus and not being responsible for spreading the virus.

I would like to see them think more about the general health and well-being of the community they are supposed to serve and the needs of the individual patients.

Excellent GP practise. I've been going there for nearly 9 years and I've always felt satisfied with my care. The GP's and nurses are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Referrals to specialist services have been speedy and I couldn't thank them enough for keeping me in good health all of this time. It's perfect having a pharmacy right downstairs as well!

Horrible health service!! The doctor I had been seeing seems to be ineffective and clueless and I'm not sure he had always followed correct procedure. Pedestrian treatments were given for very serious problems and I felt like I wasn't really being heard. Their counselling was terrible. The counsellor was judgemental, invalidating and did more harm than good. This surgery is a good example of the ineffectiveness of the NHS.

All employees at this medical practice need a course and advice about GDPR. I've had my health details mismanaged more than once. They don't seem to have common sense when it comes to protecting a patient's confidentiality.

Worst GP, They never answer the phone and never have appointments. Rude staff. Unethical doctors.

Attended with a severe on going sore throat, saw a physician associate who had to be prompted to feel my throat. Even after this prompt she felt no need to actually look in my throat. I advised her to check my fbc and vitamin D level, went to make an appointment for this and was offered the 13th of March. When I questioned why such a long time since I was ill now, the receptionist replied, we save the sooner appointments for unwell patients! She then offered me an appointment in a weeks time.
I phoned today for my results, was told them over the phone and was told my bone profile was deranged and the result they gave me was nonsense. I think they just made up some numbers. When requesting to speak to someone about this result, they hung up on me. i called a further 4 times. spoke to two other receptionists, one who said she was unable to view my results and another who said she was unable to give them out over the phone. When I requested to speak to the practise manager I was hung up on both times. When calling back, they put the phone down before even saying hello! When trying to find a way to complain you have to send a letter to the practice manager! Luckily I work in the NHS and know when things are not right but lots of people have to accept this standard of care . Lets hope nobody dies at the hands of this practice.

I love this place they have always helped me with any issue that I have had, no longer than 10min wait. :) Brilliant! So easy to get an appointment online as well!

Rude doctor with no manners for even a simple hi and bye!

I find this surgery very helpful, maybe I have been lucky but every doctor I have seen has gone over and above.

Always super happy with the service, very quick and professional.

My best medical experience to date because of the Physician Associate Eleanor Cox! I came to her with 4 concurrent health issues (including mental and physical health), she listened to my medical history in great detail, and we immediately starting discussing and implementing treatment plans. First GP experience I've had where I felt like MY HEALTH was more important than getting me out the door with some medicine. First GP experience where I felt like my own research and knowledge of my body was considered and built upon. Today, a year later, I returned for a pesky ear infection, and I got the same wonderful treatment from her. Listened. Discussed. Made a plan of action. 100% recommend.

I have lived in Putney for more than 4years now and have always been registered at this practice. I don't have tbh any comparison benchmark with other practices. I think this works quite well if you are young, tech savy, have a certain patience (in terms of waiting times) and have no urgent issues. Like that, easy peasy, go online, book an app and you know that to see YOUR specific doctor you probably have to wait at least a couple of weeks. It's not ideal, but has worked fine for me so far. NOT ideal if you have an urgent need to see your GP, then it's when it's clear that it's not a bulletproof system. Improve that, and review easily goes up to 4 stars :)

I'm starting to seriously dislike this doctors surgery. I joined in 2013 and the service was amazing, you could get appointments like that and I had a fabulous doctor who I always saw. She then unfortunately left and I developed a few health problems. Now I see random doctors on every visit and it's very confusing no doctor wants you to just stick to them. I came in only three days ago, regarding my asthma and didn't get any help really only to end up in hospital and was asked "So, who's looking after you regarding your asthma? It should be improving not getting worse". Doctors don't listen and the online booking service is a sham. Sort it out, please!

Poor service, a GP out of touch, waste of Tax payers money,

Just came in today and I can't praise the reception staff enough and no, I'm not related to them and yes, I've been a patient for over 8 years! Very pleasant, friendly and helpful.

The GP that saw me was a joke. And the booking system is medieval. Putting the NHS to shame.

They have never helped with anything, no matter what was being presented to those doctors. They are always in rush, clearly they do not cope with so many patients. I cannot say any positive word about them, even if I want very much. Terrible patient care

Today's date is 28/10/19.
I have been online and the next available appointment to see a doctor is 26/11/19.
4 weeks to wait for an appointment!

Firstly I accept this practice isn't perfect but what medical practice is?,I have been registered here for over 6 years ,during that time I have found all the staff,from the receptionists, practice nurses,Holly Aldous who carries out my annual spirometry test.. The Doctors ,all have been extremely kind and pleasant. I have been registered with many surgeries both in England and Wales I have no hesitation in registering my gratitude and satisfaction in regard to this medical practice.

I had cause to call these people today. I didn't even talk to anyone and the phone was put down on me 3 times. If there are 3 people queuing the phone system automatically puts the phone down on you! In the end I used two mobile phones and the house phone. Shocking organization.

I'm genuinely surprised at the negative tone of the review's here.
I've been with the practice for 15 years and have always been grateful for the care shown by the doctors and nurse's.
That said the receptionists sometimes leave quite a lot to be desired, I avoid interacting with them where possible by booking appointments on line.

I m really surprised to see some of the ratings on here. I am a new patient and have to say so far my experience has only been extremely positive. The lady on the desk when I went to register was very nice and quick to help. As soon as I could I booked an online appointment and got a response extremely quickly. The doctor I spoke to over the phone was very kind, very understanding and listening to everything I was concerned about. So far if I had to say one thing about this practice it would be to remark on the level of kindness shown by the desk and medical staff. Very happy I registered here and encourage anyone looking for a GP practice in Putney to register here.

Not a good service. There are some good doctors and nurses at the surgery but the system is so broken that getting an appointment is a nightmare. Impossible to get through on the phone most of the time. The online appointment application is terrible. Doctors are always running late due to selfish patients showing up late. I have never been seen until at least 20 minutes past my appointment time, sometimes upwards of an hour. GPs are extremely time-limited by NHS restrictions when you do see one. Would not recommend this surgery to anyone.

UPDATE As of March 2018 the current MINIMUM wait to see a GP is 23 days.

Appointments run on time. Doctors and reception staff are sympathetic, kind and will refer you to the right help you need.

I have been with this practice for many years.All the Doctors/nurses I have seen for different reasons have always been helpful.Yes sometimes you do have to wait awhile but that could be that people who have gone in before you may have some complex / serious matters going on that take longer than the 10 minutes alloted.I and my family have had great care here.

Felt supported and reassured by the registration process we had to do in a rush recently. Receptionists and doctors are certainly trying their best and really came through for us.

The drs are absolutely useless and every time I ve been sent an e referral it s been for the complete wrong department, how is a qualified dr not able to read a file properly??

Decent gps but god what a poor admin staff...
Rude, bureaucratic, not listening to patients and worst of all having opinions on your treatment or requests.

I have been a member of this practice since 2012 and have always experienced great support from the GP's and reception staff. You can sometimes struggle to get an "on the day" appointment but then emergency telephone consultations are available and if necessary you will get to see a doctor and the online booking service is also very helpful.
The receptionists can be a bit short with you but again - completely understandable in a practice of this size with that many patients. They are kept very busy no doubt.
The nurses are also very helpful and try to minimise the time away from work which I appreciate.
All in all, a great practice with great staff. Everyone is very accommodating about me seeing the same doctor on a regular basis and having the pharmacy available on the way out it is fantastic. Yes, sometimes there is a longer waiting period but I know that sometimes, it may be me delaying the doctor so I don't mind waiting - it is service worth waiting for.

All well meaning and probably good if you have something simple, but long wait times for a GP, you will rarely see the same one, many tests are outsourced, and doctors have an impossible job. Oversubscribed practice--and the place that finally convinced me to go private.

It is impossible to get an appointment here. It is so so so frustrating. I can't imagine they have enough sessions running for their patient list. Please sort it out. Some of the staff try, but the time they spend saying 'its not possible' must be so inefficient and drive them crazy too. THERE MUST BE A BETTER WAY!

Drs always very helpful and friendly. Majority of other staff great but sometimes I am met with incredibly unhelpful reception staff on the phone who are so rude, they huff and puff and refuse to book you an appointment over the phone even if you've been requested to do so by the doctor. Just a thought to reception staff - you never know what strangers have been through or are going through, so think about that next time you're shouting at them down the phone.

It s my first time to post a review online
Very upset with my visit today at the clinic
The receptionist named KRYSTYNA was very rude

I still remember her words was what you expect from NHS when you pay pennies?

Been a very good GP for 20 years, now more services and professionals in their new offices. Once you are a registered user it's easy to organise repeat prescriptions etc. Excellent Doctors and wouldn't want to change.

Very difficult to get an appointment even by telephone. Usually a two week wait or at really awkward times for working people (middle of the day etc)

Not the first time I have been let down by this GP. Repeat prescriptions not released on time, and as a diabetic it's quite crucial to have them regularly. This morning I have been scheduled for a blood test which didn't happened. Got 3 reminders to attend, latest one from yesterday and this morning standing in reception I have been informed it's been cancelled and the message was sent. My appointment was at 8:10, the message about cancellation was sent at 08:07 while I was speaking to receptionist. That is quite a mess if there is one sickness and you have no one on the premises who can take a blood! The next available appointment is in 2 weeks time. No system in place where you could have a priority to get a place in case of cancellation.

Everyone working in the surgery are fantastic, I wish I could give more stars!!

I found the new online system for patient interaction to be wonderful.
My enquiry was handled efficiently, professionally and in a friendly manner.
As if they don't have enough to deal with at this time!
PM grows in my estimation as a superior medical practice with a patient first focus!

The practise is under so much stress it can't keep up with demands. After waiting 2-3 weeks for a doctors appointment, it's fair to say that is a ridiculous time to wait if you're in pain. If your illness is complex then you need to book another gp appointment to discuss it further, thus another long wait....
The gps do try their hardest to help their patients, however when the waiting time in the waiting room alone is close to an hour some days (when you actually get an appointment), it can be rather frustrating.

I have been registered with this practice for a few years and I have always had the best service. On top of it, the people at the reception were always helpful and accommodating. That changed when a new lady joined a few months ago, someone with a low-pitched voice, unfortunately I do not know her name. She always sounds so unhelpful and unwilling to do her job that it just refrained me from calling the practice at all or when I do, I know it won't be a pleasant experience.

I find reception incredibly efficient and friendly. Every Dr. I have seen has been amazing and exceptionally knowledgeable, proactive, and kind. This is a fantastic clinic in Putney and well worth registering.

I hated it when this hospital was far away from the station and I had to walk 20 mins each way from my home but it is now 5 mins from Putney (mainline) station and is 250% better. The facility is superb and the quality of GPs and nurses are just excellent. The channel 5 TV's docs-soap does not do any justice though.

Getting test results is really a challenge.
Only mean is to call their specific line open with a very strict time-slot (1pm to 2:30pm) and busy.
It's been 4 days in a row I am holding 30 min to get my call answered - without success.
Not a good service.
Apart from that, the GP I met has been really kind.

Leaving this GP as soon as possible. I don t know how many hours I ve spent on hold waiting for the phone to be picked up to then have a rude receptionists to talk to. Waiting times for appointments are terrible and lengthy. The doctors themselves have been nice and thorough but that s when you eventually get to seeing them.

The GPs offer outstanding care and the nurses and support staff are friendly and professional.

I've been going to the practice for 15 years and the doctors have been very good. However the reception people are arrogant, incompetent and rude. I phoned at 11:31 24 Sep to get a prescription sent to my pharmacy to cover an omission in my prescription two days prior. It was never sent. I phoned 15:35 to request a paper one left at reception. I turned up 15:40 and it wasn't there. OK everyone makes mistakes, sometimes even three times, in a row, if you're completely useless. However, what made my blood boil was when I asked them to write my medicine name on paper, so I could get an emergency supply, and it was an emergency. They refused to do that even though it would have taken less then 30 seconds to get it from the computer. They had done so earlier when I phoned but because they mispronounced it so badly I needed to get the name straight. It could have been a life or death situation and the reception couldn't give a hoot.

The reception staff are extremely rude. Appointments can only be made online, my uncle is going blind and can t use the internet, how are these vulnerable people supposed to make doctor s appointments.

Terrible service and organisation, every other doctors surgery I've been to is much better