GP Wait Times - your experience please….

Mine tend to vary. Sometimes it’s a couple of days, sometimes it’s later that day. My main issue is they say you’re limited to ten minutes per appointment and one problem per appointment. So if you develop two problems that seem completely unrelated, they may turn you away and say you need another appointment.

They’ve not refused me yet but one of the doctors did get a bit snappy when I went for a prescription renewal and asked could they look at an issue with my arm in the same appointment.

At €70 for an appointment (and an extra €30 for a blood test), I already felt robbed that they wouldn’t just renew the prescription for me. If they had refused to look at my arm because they insisted on a second app, I would have been raging.

If you make a case for an emergency appointment then its same day. If you want a normal appointment with a specific doctor its 5-10 working days. Waterford area.

By how much has the population increased in your area, in that time frame?

My GP quickest is usually a weekly AVG. Is ten days, so if you're sick, forget about it. No emergency appointments. Carlow Town

Used to be able to see my GP within 2 days (pre-Covid). Now, he has bought the practice as the original two GPs both retired, and it is a minimum of 2 weeks for a phone consultation with him, and he now only sees patients after he has had a phone consultation first. Time from phone consultation to face-to-face visit, is another week to ten days. The practice in general has also shortened their office hours by an hour on each end, and have two half days a week, when it used to be one.

Two new GPs in the practice, both will see patients without a prior phone consultation, but it's still ten days to two weeks. I have no confidence in either of the new GPs as I have found them both very unsure of themselves, and seem to need to check everything with the senior GP first, or their answer to everything is "oh I need to refer you to the hospital".

I've mostly given up on my surgery for anything but my repeat prescriptions and diabetes check. Now if Im actually sick I just go straight to TLC-Doc, where at least you will get seen by a doctor within a day.

Its a shame after being a patient at the same surgery for 40 years.

I wonder if this is such a big factor, to be honest.

I know my GP practice tell anyone who enquires that they're not taking on new patients, and it seems like that has been the standard reply for years now. The same with other Practices in the area.

GPs are not obliged to take on new patients, afaik.

Most likely a merger of multiple practices. Particularly if it moved in to a primary care centre at the same time.

Next day usually - solo gp in West Dublin. But my gp has had a recorded message saying he's not taking any new patients for nearly 5 years now. There are no gp practices accepting new patients in any of the nearby areas, so I'm very worried about what will happen when he retires in the next 5-10 years. He told me he cannot get a locum to be able go on holidays, paying €1000 a day.

Generally 2-3 days, last time I rang on Wednesday afternoon and had an appointment for the Friday morning. I moved last year but I'm still registered with my previous GP, tried to move locally but I can't even get a response.

This. If I want to see my GP it take two to three weeks, if its an emergency usually the same day or following day depending on the time you call in. But not my GP on the emergency Dungarvan Area

Appointments here over past 2-3 years are running to 2 months and that's paying full price. There are a half dozen GPs on the books. If emergency, can attend by phoning and going down and waiting till someone is free. Twenty years ago a typical appointment was a few days at most. Well populated town and big rural hinterland, lots of people.

I'm laughing at the idea of getting an appointment in just 8 days! That'd be a deluxe service my friend.

Yep, the government needs to force women GPs to get back to working fulltime, at gunpoint if necessary! Tongue in cheek but that's a contributory factor to the GP shortage. Another very significant factor is that there are more people - old and young - with GP cards; and as they don't have to pay to see the Doctor, they tend to avail of the free service more often.

My GP was forced to retire last summer at age 70, but is now working part-time for another busy practice. He used to charge €40, his new practice now charges €60 to see him - and it takes longer. Used to be less than a week, now it's at least a week.

On the good side - for him - he has reduced his golf handicap by two shots!

The receptionist never asks me details. I'd be annoyed if she did.