Our appointments system is designed to provide continuity of care and a personalised service for all our patients.  You can book appointments directly with your usual GP, who knows you and your medical history best, helping make your care more personal and consistent.

If your usual GP is not available on the day you need an appointment, you will be offered an appointment with a designated buddy GP or team member who works closely with your usual GP and has access to your medical history.  This ensures your care continues smoothly, even when your GP is away.

In some cases, it is worth considering an appointment with a member of our Nursing Team rather than a doctor.  Practice nurses are qualified to deal with many ailments and you may be seen more quickly.

Scroll down for information on how to book an appointment. 

Wherever possible, for routine appointment requests, please use our online options.  Doing so will help us keep our phone lines free for those who need urgent medical help or cannot access online information.

Routine Appointments

• Routine appointments can be booked in advance.
• You can book online through the NHS App, via the NHS website or by calling the Surgery.
• These routine appointments will be made with your usual GP whenever they are available, or with their buddy GP if they are not in that day.

Urgent or Same-Day Issues

• For urgent concerns, you can request an appointment using SystmConnect.
• You can also call the surgery, where our care navigation team will direct you to the most appropriate clinician or service.

Urgent or Same-Day Issues: Using SystmConnect

For urgent requests, you can use SystmConnect.

How SystmConnect Works:

• You complete a pre-designed questionnaire related to your symptoms or request.
• Your answers are sent directly to the practice and automatically linked to your medical record.
• This allows the GP to quickly understand your issue without needing a phone call.

How GPs Respond:

• A GP will review your request and respond with the most appropriate action, such as:
• offering you an appointment
• issuing or adjusting a prescription
• providing advice or further instructions

Why SystmConnect Saves Time:

• It reduces waiting times on the phone.
• It allows GPs to triage requests more efficiently.
• It ensures the correct clinician sees your request first time.
• It means many issues can be resolved without needing an appointment, saving time for both patients and clinicians.

You can still call the surgery if you prefer, and our care navigation team will guide you to the right option.

The NHS App is provided and managed by the NHS. You will need an NHS login to use the NHS app.  If you don't already have one, you will need to set up an NHS login before using the NHS App.

Once registered, you will be able to log in to NHS online services using the NHS App on your Smartphone or through an internet browser using your email address and password. 

Learn more about the NHS App here>>

We have a texting service which allows you to receive confirmation and reminders about your appointments.

To have this service we will need to update our records to reflect your consent to do so. 

Use SystmConnect to contact us online using the Admin request option>>

Alternatively call us on 01202 825353.

Please remember to update your contact details with us when you change address, telephone numbers and email address.

We know people forget things, cancelling GP appointments being one of them. Remember to cancel your appointment if you don't need it.

Every appointment you don't cancel means we have lost the opportunity to help someone who needed it.  If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason, please inform us as soon as possible to enable us to give the slot to someone else. 

Please contact us as soon as you know you cannot attend your appointment. If your appointment has been arranged for a time within the next 24 hours, please call Reception directly on 01202 865800.

If your appointment has been set for more than 24 hours in advance (excluding weekends and public holidays), you can cancel an appointment quickly and easily using our online. 

If you would like a chaperone present for your appointment, please just ask when booking, or in the consultation.  You may prefer to ask a relative or friend to accompany you, which is perfectly acceptable.  At times a GP may request a chaperone, and a trained staff member may perform this task

We can arrange interpretation and translation services in person or by phone, for those patients who do not speak English. Please let us know if you require this service when booking an appointment.

Training Practice

Verwood Surgery is a ‘training practice’. GP Registrars are doctors experienced in hospital medicine, but fresh to general practice and may be working in the practice for up to one year at a time. 

As part of their training, some consultations will be recorded on videotape. These recordings are strictly confidential and only seen by doctors. They are done with your consent which of course you are entitled to withhold.

Verwood Surgery offers a limited number of additional doctor appointments outside of usual opening hours. This provision is to help patients who are unable to attend the surgery during normal surgery hours.

These appointments are for routine matters only and must be booked in advance by contacting reception during normal surgery hours. Please be aware that follow up appointments, nurse and phlebotomy appointments will generally need to be arranged during normal surgery hours.

The extended surgery appointments are available as follows:

• Monday 6:30pm to 7pm hours
• Tuesday 6:30pm to 7pm hours
• Wednesday 6:30pm to 7pm hours
• Thursday 6:30pm to 7pm hours

Home visits and urgent problems during these times will continue to be handled by Out of Hours service on 111

It is hoped that this service will benefit those patients who previously have had difficulties in attending appointments during normal surgery hours. We ask that if you can attend surgery during normal surgery hours you continue to do so if at all possible.

We encourage patients to attend the Surgery, where full equipment and facilities are available. Most medical problems are best managed in this clinical setting. However, care in the community may sometimes be appropriate.

Home visits are reserved for patients who are housebound or have a clinical condition that prevents them from attending the Surgery. Please request a home visit only when the patient is genuinely too unwell to travel. Most children can safely be brought to the Surgery by car, taxi or pushchair.

If you require a home visit, please call before 10 am to help the doctors plan their rounds. Give brief details of the problem to the receptionist so the doctor can assess urgency. Visits may not take place the same day or with a doctor of your choice.

When requesting a visit, please provide:

• The patient’s name, address and date of birth
• Your name, contact details and relationship to the patient (if calling on their behalf)
• The nature of the problem and any relevant medical history or recent events
• Any access codes needed for entry to the home

Community nurses may visit if your GP refers you. Health visitors may also provide home visits if you have recently had a baby or are newly registered with a child under five.