Appointments

In order to improve access, the practice has adopted a new on the day appointment system similar to the "DoctorFirst" appointment system. This means that when you contact the surgery for an appointment with a GP, the clinician will contact you on the same day over the phone before offering a face to face appointment at a mutually agreed time between the clinician and the patient. By using this method of appointment a number of queries can be resolved by a telephone or video consultation. This helps us to reach out to more patients and provide an effective on the day appointment service.

We also provide online consultations with “E-consult” where you complete a consultation form online, a clinician will respond to the query within 72 working hours. If as a result of the online consultation a face to face appointment is required, the clinician will offer this accordingly.

Appointments with our practice nurses are available in both telephone and face to face appointments and can be booked directly via reception. These are available both on the day and can be pre-booked

It is important that you inform the reception staff on 01473 252827 if you are unable to attend your appointment, this will allow that appointment to be offered to another patient. Please try to give atleast 24 hours notice (excluding weekends and public holidays) when cancelling your appointment.

If you fail to notify the Practice that you are unable to attend, you will be sent a letter informing you that you have defaulted from your appointment. Persistent defaulters maybe removed from the list.

Arriving late for your appointment

If you are running late, please contact the surgery as soon as you can. We will try to make every effort possible to still see you, but this may not always be possible.

On Saturday mornings, the practice will be open for collection of admin and prescription items only but the telephone service will be switched to the out of hours services.

The practice also offers a few clinics a month on Saturday mornings. This is to support patients who have difficulty coming during the day, such as night workers or those who are commuting daily. Please note that not all appointments can be booked on a Saturday and there are NOT Doctors working on a Saturday clinic. You will be asked to book with the GP+ Service (See below) or to call 111 or 999 depending on the emergency of your problem.

GP+ Service

At peak times you may be offered an appointment with the GP+ service based at Riverside Clinic in Ipswich. This service is available to registered patients in the evening and at weekends and is an extension of the usual service provided to you by Barrack Lane Medical Centre. 

We will arrange for you to be seen by a clinician who has access, with your, consent, to your medical records and who will keep your usual GP fully informed of any diagnosis and treatment provided. The Riverside Clinic is located at 2 Landseer Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP3 0AZ.

Please note: the Riverside Clinic is NOT a walk-in Centre and GP+ appointments can only be arranged via the practice or the 111 (Out of Hours) service.

Please note home visits are only for housebound patients, lack of transport is not a reason for a home visit: please arrange for someone to bring you to the surgery.

Please ring by 10.30 AM if at all possible to enable us to prioritise and plan. Please give the receptionist as much information as possible.

The doctor may ring you before deciding if a visit is needed and who will carry out the visit.

Patients are sometimes referred onto secondary care and your clinician will discuss this with you. If you agree with your clinician that you need an appointment with a specialist, they will discuss the options with you, including which hospitals and clinics are available for your treatment.

You are entitled to a copy of any referral form/letters which are sent to the hospital; please ask the referring clinician if you would like a copy. 

 Medical Students and Student Nurses

Barrack Lane Medical Centre is an Undergraduate Teaching Practice for Medical students from the University of East Anglia. Click HERE to find out more.

We also provide important training for the King's College London Department of General Practice and Primary Care for student doctors and nurses.

You will always be informed if a student is to be present during your consultation. Please tell the receptionist if you do not wish for a student to be present.

Speciality Trainees in General Practice

The practice is an appointed General Practitioner Training Practice and often benefits from the services of a fully qualified doctor who is doing an extra 3 years training to be a GP. One or two new doctors join us each year. They all have a minimum of two years post qualification experience in hospital medicine before coming into General Practice.

They may sometimes be under supervision by another doctor during consultations or may be using a video camera for training purposes. Your consent will always be sought on these occasions.

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

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