Henwick Halt Medical Centre

I have never been this disappointed by a GP surgery. I moved to St John's and registered with Henwick Halt. A couple of months later, I began to struggle with a medical condition. Firstly, getting through to someone at Henwick Halt is a challenge. They don't seem to have a waiting system so it's constantly engaged. Once I actually got to speak to someone, I was usually offered a call back the same day, which is great. Unfortunately, I got to speak to a different person every time so there was no consistency. They tried 2-3 different things but none of them helped my condition. I called, saying this is affecting me mentally because by then I was struggling for months. That's when I spoke to a nurse and she basically told me to just stick with painkillers. I asked her if I could call back in a few weeks if I still struggle because I don't want to be dependent on using painkillers every day for the rest of my life and she told me there's no point. I was in tears after that call. A few days later I switched surgeries but because of my experience with the nurse at Henwick Halt I was too scared to call and suffered for another 2 months before the painkillers actually became less effective and I was forced to do something. Not only is it much easier to get to speak to someone now, I got to see a GP the day after I called and she examined me properly. We're still trying to get to the bottom of what it is but I feel so much safer now because they seem to care. That being said, my child was looked after much better at Henwick Halt and some of the people I spoke to were very nice and dedicated. However, after feeling completely brushed off and let down by the nurse, I cannot give a better rating than 1 star.

Terrible. Received a letter 2 weeks ago asking me to phone to talk about blood test results. Have spent the time since then phoning the triage line which is permanently engaged between 8 and 12. Most surgeries have a call waiting system. Not this one. You ring and get a busy tone, again and again. Reading the reviews it seems this has been going on for at least a year. The call system acts as an artificial flow limiter, meaning the genuine demand for the service cannot be accurately gauged; fundamental information when assessing the sufficiency of your service. Very, very poor.

I’ve only recently signed up to this medical centre after moving back to the area and I’m not impressed at all. Day 2 of calling reception and still not spoken to a human, just had a dialling tone and repetitive message. Heard rumours, via friends and family members, that the doctors are very good once you get to see them but I fear I’ll never be able to confirm this. If something happens to me can someone please ensure that “we are currently experiencing a high volume of calls. In order to avoid a lengthy wait we would suggest that you may wish to call back at a later time” is engraved on my headstone please !!

Worst doctors surgery I have ever experienced in all my 81 years. Used to be great when it was over in the bullring. Too many patients now. I left and registered with another practice, best days work I ever did. The Doctors and Nurses are good if you can ever get to see one!!

This practice needs a complete overhaul. Phoned for appointment, took 52 minutes to answer. They don't inform you of any changes what so ever as I found out about hearing aid batteries, which they do not supply any more. Absolutely shambolic there now. Doctors are fine..... When you can get to see them.