Book or change an appointment

Last Updated: Tuesday, 18 March 2025

Book an appointment with a GP or ANP

(please scroll down for nurse and other appointments)

The practice now operates a “total triage” model of appointments with our GPs and ANPs. This means that all requests go through a series of checks to get you through to the correct clinician at the correct time. These appointments can be accessed either via our online portal (PATCHS) or by calling 0151 256 9800. Online and telephone services are available between 8am and 6:30pm Monday to Friday.

Get advice online

If you feel you need to be seen that day, contacting us as early as possible is essential, ideally before midday. If you think you need to be seen at home that day, please call us before 11am – please see our Home Visits section further down this page.

Whether you request your appointment online or via the telephone, you will need to answer the same questions before the request can be forwarded to a clinician. This ensures that patients are given the correct appointment in the correct timescale. If you do not feel comfortable giving this information to our care navigators, you will be asked to complete the form via PATCHS. The more information you are able to give, the more effectively our team will be able to direct your request to the correct team.

The information you provide is then transferred to our clinical team and prioritised, with medical emergencies being dealt with as soon as possible. Once your request has been reviewed, you will then receive further contact from the practice either in the form of a phone call, invitation to a face to face appointment at the practice or a text/ email with further information and advice.

We aim to respond to all requests within 72 hours (this does not mean you are guaranteed an appointment in that timescale). If your condition changes or you become more unwell whilst waiting on a reply, please either contact the surgery again to update us (or speak to the out of hours team / 111 if the surgery is closed).

Whilst we appreciate that you may wish to bring someone with you to your appointment, please note that the appointment is for the person it is booked for only.

Please be aware that Ellergreen Medical Centre works alongside a number of different health care professionals, and you may be directed to them as a first point of contact. These teams all carry their own expertise, and can often deal with issues directly without involvement of the GP. These include:-

Practice Nurses and Health Care Assistants (HCA)
Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians for medication queries
Mental Health Practitioners
Wellbeing Link Workers
Diabetic Specialist Nurses
First Contact Physio for musculoskeletal problems
Contraceptive clinics
Community pharmacies
Walk-In-Centres
Treatment Rooms
Extended Access

Home Visits

If you feel that you need a review with a member of our practice team as a home visit, please contact the GP surgery in the usual manner as for a GP, Nurse or HCA appointment as detailed elsewhere on this page.

We do ask for the following considerations when requesting a home visit to ensure that we can allocate the correct staff member to your request in a timely manner.

Firstly, please ensure that on contacting the surgery, you highlight to our care navigators that you or your relative will require a home visit. Secondly, in the case of needing an urgent review, please telephone before 11am, giving our Care Navigators a telephone number for the place where you are staying as you will be contacted by a doctor to assess your need for the visit. All requests are triaged but cannot be guaranteed.

If you do not have a telephone, someone else can make the request for you - in this case please make sure your representative has enough information for the doctor to make an informed decision.

To understand better how we define 'housebound', please click here.

Nurse & Health Care Assistant (HCA) Appointments

Our Practice Nurses and HCAs operate a routine pre-bookable appointment system, both phone-call and face-to-face, which can be booked in advance. These can be accessed by calling 0151 256 9800 between 8am – 6:30pm, however you may find it easier to call after 10am when our phone lines are less busy and new appointments are opened up for booking. Appointments for cervical screening (also known as smear test) can be booked online.

Got An Admin Query? - Send It To Us Online!

You can use PATCHS to contact us from 8am to 6.30pm with admin queries such as requesting letters, fit notes and more… Click here for the PATCHS logo to submit your request.

You can register for an account or use PATCHS as a guest. We recommend registering for an account so you don’t need to enter your details each time you use PATCHS, making it easier to submit further requests without having to phone the practice and wait in a queue.

Once in PATCHS, simply select ‘Admin Request’ and confirm your contact details. You’ll be asked to complete a few questions - please give as much information as you can to help us with your request. We’ll respond to your request and contact you if we need to.

Please note that we do not accept prescription requests through PATCHS - repeat medication can be requested online via the NHS App or by handing in a completed repeat medication request slip. Click here to visit our Prescriptions page. If you require anything other than a sick note, letter request etc, please call our reception team on (0151) 256 9800.

Test results and other queries

Our phone lines are busiest during the hours of 8am – 10am when patients frequently call for GP appointments. If you are calling to request information about test results, or need other information from the surgery, please consider calling after 12noon. Not only are the phone lines quieter so your call will be answered more quickly, but our staff will have more time to discuss your query and answer your questions more thoroughly.

Most test results can now be viewed via the NHS App once they have been checked and signed off by the doctors.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible by phoning (0151) 256 9800 to enable us to offer the appointment to someone else. If you have booked online and wish to now cancel, please cancel your appointment online as soon as possible.