How to see your Doctor:

Registering with Riverside
When you register with this practice you will be asked to complete a short, confidential questionnaire, and have a simple health check with the practice nurse at a convenient time. Please ask for a copy of our welcome pack.

Brigg Appointments & Enquiries: (01652) 650131 Appointments: (01652) 600307 / 600308 Broughton (01652) 652685

How to make an appointment with a Doctor:
Riverside Surgery operates a mixed appointment system with same-day and pre-bookable appointments. Please, wherever possible, use a same-day appointment.

1. Telephone the surgery on the day you need an appointment.
2. An appointment will be offered within one working day, wherever possible with your choice of Doctor.
3. You may consult any of the Doctors within the practice.
4. If your need, or problem, is urgent please feel free to consult any of the Doctors free at that time.
5. Please book a separate appointment for each person attending.
6. If you cannot keep your appointment, please let us know.
7. On days where demand for appointments is very heavy, you may be put through to the Triage Nurse.
8. Some appointments can be booked up to a week in advance for those patients with genuine circumstances where making a same-day or next day appointment is difficult.


How to make an appointment with a nurse:
Our nursing sisters are running a variety of clinics throughout the day for the promotion of good health and disease management. They will also help you with - immunisations, cervical smears, ear syringing, travel vaccination advice clinics, other referrals arranged by your doctor and also telephone advice sessions.

You may book nurse appointments in advance.

Triage - telephone (01652) 650131
We have a Triage Nurse who deals with requests for home visits and emergencies, as well as offering advice on a variety of conditions such as urinary tract infections, emergency contraception, head lice, use of Paracetemol and inhalers. This service operates Monday to Friday 08:00 to 18:30.

Consulting Times, by appointment at Riverside Surgery

Surgery hours may vary but when this happens we will try to give as much notice as possible

Branch Surgeries:

For details of Practice Clinic times, click here

Home Visits - telephone (01652) 650131
If you are too ill to attend the surgery please try to telephone before 10:30 am to enable the doctor to plan his rounds. Please attend the surgery whenever possible. The Triage Nurse handles all requests for home visits.

Speaking to the Doctors:
If you wish to speak to your doctor on the telephone it will normally be possible to do this by arrangement with the receptionist. It would be helpful in judging the urgency of the call and also ensuring the doctor has your notes and relevant information available if you could tell the receptionist the nature of your call when you ring. At other times we may be busy and we find that interruptions during surgery are upsetting both to ourselves and to patients we are seeing. For this reason we have asked receptionists not to disturb consultations with non-urgent telephone calls. A more convenient time for you to ring will be suggested. Please remember our Triage Nurse may be able to help you.

Ringing for results:
You will not be contacted routinely with your results unless the doctor wishes to see you again. If you do ring for results, it is best to do this in the afternoon when the doctors have seen the mail which arrives in the morning. Receptionists are not allowed to give out results without first checking with a doctor. Certain results, because of their confidential nature, are not given over the phone.

The new GP Contract (April 2004) means that we will provide:
1. Essential Services
This is when you are ill or suffering from a chronic disease. You will be able to see a doctor by requesting an appointment, and we will provide you with care for the ongoing management of your illness.

2. Additional Services:
a) Cervical screening (smears).
b) Contraceptive services.
c) Vaccinations and immunisations.
d) Childhood vaccinations and immunisations.
e) Child health surveillance services.
f) Maternity medical services.
g) Minor surgery (cryotherapy).

3. Enhanced Services:
a) Access to healthcare professionals within 24 hours and a GP appointment within 48 hours.
b) Quality information preparation.
c) Influenza and pneumococcal immunisations for those at risk.
d) More advanced minor surgery, including cutting and injecting.
e) Fitting of intra-uterine contraceptive devices.
f) Monitoring of patients taking certain drugs for rheumatoid arthritis.
g) Post operative dressings and suture removal.
h) Chronic wound management.
i) Some secondary care requested blood tests.
j) Starting diabetic patients on insulin.
k) A specialist substance misuse service.
l) Minor injuries service.
m) Advanced minor surgery.
n) Glucose tolerance testing.

Transport:
Please remember that it is your responsibility to arrange transport to the surgery.

The Voluntary Car Service may be able to help if you have no means of getting to the surgery. Telephone (01652) 636292 for details.

Fees:
Certain services provided by your doctor are not covered by the NHS and you may be asked to pay a fee, e.g. pre-employment medicals, private certificates, insurance claims and some holiday vaccinations etc. Please ask the receptionist for details.

Due to NHS changes on how payments are made to dispensing practices, Riverside Surgery is VAT registered from 01 April 2006. This will affect some fees for non-NHS services.