Greetings Members,
I thought I would quickly share something that may or may not help you.
It seems getting GP appointments is getting harder and waiting times are getting longer. These things do vary depending on where you live , but if it is a problem for you then there is an option to use the NHS 111 Service.
Put simply, 111 is a free number to call when you have an urgent healthcare need that isn’t a life-threatening situation. Following a short assessment NHS 111 will direct you to the right service, at the right time and as close to your home as possible.
A couple of weeks ago I called NHS 111 to discuss a problem and for me personally, this turned out to be a very good consultation and the whole thing was done in 3 hours. I had an initial chat with first line who walks you through a script and may be able to come up with a solution. If at the end of the script, they cannot help, they will book you in for a call with a clinician and this takes place within two hours. The clinician will be medically trained and will be able to check your medical history (if you consent). In my case, this was all done and a diagnosis and prognosis was made.
Though it was not required for me, I expect the next stage might be where they arrange for you to get a face to face or video appointment with someone local to you. Obviously it will depend on the case.
It might be something for you to consider.
I have just waited in a queue trying to reach my GP on the phone. After waiting for an hour and reaching position #1 in the queue, I was cut off as it was lunchtime 
This after telling me, I will be responded to and even saying I can choose to get a call back and my position in the queue will not be lost (they forgot to say unless the lunchbreak kicks in).
I am now trying again and I am back to #15 in the queue i.e. at the back of the queue 
Maybe I should try 111 again 
Namaste|
