New Total Triage Model for appointments
Your easy online way to contact us
From 1 October 2025, in keeping with the New GP Contract, Government directive and many other GP Surgeries in England, we are moving to the Total Triage System for appointment provision.
Instead of telephoning the practice, all requests for GP and urgent appointments will require the completion of a simple online triage form, accessed from a smartphone, NHS App or our website, where you will describe your symptoms/needs.
The form will then be assessed by a senior clinician.
We will reply and inform you of how we will manage your request – ranging from a Face to Face or telephone appointment with a GP/clinician, in-house physio or pharmacist, or we may signpost to a more appropriate service, or give healthcare advice.
Many patient requests can be managed by return online/digital communication without the need for a traditional face to face appointment with a GP.
As with any new system, there are likely to be challenges and adjustments, but feedback nationally, from many other GP Surgeries already using the Total Triage model, has been universally very positive. With patients receiving replies to their enquiries often within hours of submitting their form, avoiding the inconvenience of waiting in a queue on the phone.
Streamlining service provision in this way is a more effective use of finite NHS resource and aims to give appointments to those in most need of one.
For patients unable to contact the practice online, our reception phone lines will remain open for guidance and support in completing the form.
There are no changes to making Practice Nurse appointments, wound dressings appointments, vaccination appointments, HCA or chronic disease (diabetes/asthma/COPD) appointments, and the minor injury service.
It is important for you to provide detailed and accurate information about your symptoms on the form. To improve efficiency, and to reduce our need to request more initial information from you, please include how long you have had your symptoms, their severity/effect on your function, and what treatment you have already tried. This will help us triage appropriately.
Please submit only one problem on the form and ensure your contact details – telephone/text/email details – are up-to-date.
Total Triage will be open Monday to Friday during core hours. For medical advice over the weekend and bank holidays, please continue to use 111, or 999 for life-threatening emergencies.
We will have 3 types of appointment: same day for urgent requests – a member of staff will contact you to book the appointment. Within 1 week, and within 2 weeks for more routine requests.
Through September, we will have limited appointment availability as our current system winds down. Please be patient during this required process.
If the total triage system is saturated with requests, it may be necessary to temporarily advise patients of alternative service providers such as:
NHS 111 service: call 111 or go online at 111.nhs.uk
Self-referral Haywood Hospital Walk-in Centre ST6 7AG 0700-2130hrs 7 days 01782 673500.
Self-referral Shrewsbury or Telford Hospital Urgent Treatment Centres 0900-2100hrs 7 days.
Shropshire Mental Health Access Team 24 hour self-referral 0808 196 4501
www.nhs.uk/conditions/ for a health A-Z from NHS
Whitchurch Minor Injuries Unit SY13 1NT Mon-Fri 9am-5pm
7 common conditions can be treated directly by local pharmacists. These are:
Sinusitis age 12+
Sore throat age 5+
Ear infection/acute otitis media age 1-17
Infected insect bite age 1+
Impetigo skin infection age 1+
Shingles aged 18+
Uncomplicated urinary tract infection for women aged 16-64
For more information on this pharmacy service: https://www.healthwatch.co.uk/advice-and-information/2024-11-15/what-can-pharmacy-first-scheme-do-me
For advice on how to complete the total triage form
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are we making this change?
Access to a GP appointment has been a national challenge for years. Total Triage will significantly reduce the traditional rush to seek an appointment when surgeries open. It aims to improve patients receiving the right care at the right time.
What if I don’t have a smart phone, online computer access or communication needs?
You can still contact the practice by phone or in person and we will assist you in completing the online Total Triage form.
How are you advertising the change to Total Triage?
Our Patient Participation Group are kindly disseminating information about the change to Total Triage by a variety of means, and assisting/educating patients accordingly.
We will use digital and poster messaging and social media.
Can a receptionist book a GP appointment over the phone for me directly?
No, all requests must use the form. Whichever way you contact us – online, in person or over the phone, all requests will go through the same ‘single way in’ online Total Triage process.
What happens if I need an urgent appointment?
We continue to have a duty doctor every day to deal with urgent queries.
How do I submit an admin query?
Requests for sick notes and other administrative requests must also be made using the online form.
Can I still choose the doctor I wish to see?
You can request to see or speak to a specific doctor by stating so on the form, and we will take this into account when raising our response, but cannot guarantee this.