A practice in the Lincoln area

5. Mr H says the Surgery failed to provide him with reasonable adjustments when booking appointments between October 2024 and April 2025.

Mr H says the claimed failings have:

• delayed his access to healthcare, making his health significantly worse • made him lose confidence in managing his own healthcare • deteriorated his personal relationships as he has become withdrawn and irritable • caused him on-going stress and anxiety.

Mr H seeks an acknowledgment of mistakes made by the Practice. He is also looking for the Practice to make reasonable adjustments on his profile to prevent any appointment access issues going forward.

6. Mr H said he telephoned the Surgery between October 2024 and April 2025 to arrange appointments for his eye health and food poisoning. He says on these occasions the Surgery told him to use an online e-consult to book the appointments.

7. Mr H said he raised complaints about his access on three occasions with the Practice between November 2024 and April 2025.

8. Mr H said he is looking for the Surgery to acknowledge his circumstances and provide reasonable adjustments when he needs to book appointments.

11. Mr H said the Surgery failed to provide him with reasonable adjustments when booking appointments between October 2024 and April 2025. He said the Surgery told him to complete an e-consult online, when he telephoned to make an appointment. Mr H said he is unable to use e-consults.

12. Mr H said the appointment barriers have caused him a decline in his physical health, stress and anxiety, as well as a loss of confidence to independently manage his own health.

13. In its response, the Surgery said that on one occasion during a telephone call with Mr H, it was appropriate to direct Mr H to a pharmacy due to the nature of his enquiry. The Surgery said on this occasion Mr H did not require an appointment.

14. The Surgery has not responded to Mr H’s previous complaints between November 2024 and January 2025, where Mr H complained about appointment barriers. The Surgery Manager told us the person responsible for responding to these complaints has now left the post. They do not know if responses were sent to Mr H. The Surgery Manager acknowledged the Surgery has had the opportunity to respond to these.

15. NHS England, ‘How to support people who are blind or have sight loss’, A Guide for GP Surgery staff, September 2017, says staff should make contact with patients on their patient list who have sight loss, but who might not have made their needs known previously. It also says staff should take the time to find out what their needs are.

16. The Surgery said it will offer reasonable adjustments where necessary for its patients with circumstances preventing them from using online forms. The Surgery said the complaint raised in April related to a phone call which did not require an appointment, and Mr H was directed to a pharmacy.

17. We are sorry to hear Mr H has been through a difficult time. We recognise the barriers he has faced when booking appointments and understand the worry this has caused.

18. We spoke with the Surgery Manager. They said they will acknowledge Mr H’s previous complaints and apologise for the appointment booking barriers. They said they will also place a note on Mr H’s profile so appointments can be made over the telephone, when required.

19. We consider the Surgery has taken the appropriate steps to put this issue right for Mr H.

20. Complaints give us a valuable insight into the organisations we investigate. We would like to thank Mr H for sharing his experience with us. We hope the resolution sought helps to bring Mr H closure on this matter.

1. We have carefully considered Mr H’s complaint about the Surgery failing to provide him with reasonable adjustments when booking appointments between October 2024 and April 2025. We were sorry to learn of Mr H’s concerns, and we understand the upset this experience has caused.

2. We have agreed some action with the Surgery to resolve Mr H’s complaint. Mr H told us, as an outcome to his complaint, he wanted the Surgery to acknowledge its mistakes and place a note on his profile to allow him to make appointment bookings over the telephone. The Surgery has agreed to do this.

3. We are satisfied that it is appropriate to ask the Surgery to acknowledge Mr H’s individual circumstances and place a note on his profile to ensure this is visible when calling the Surgery.

4. We have therefore agreed with the Surgery to resolve Mr H’s complaint. Based on this, we are satisfied Mr H’s complaint has been resolved and will take no further action.