So, as advised in my dentist review - I am scared of Doctors. Yeah... laugh it up.. For me, there is nothing worse than cold, clinical rooms where you might get bad news. Not so weird now, is it? I have lived in town 6 years now and was chuffed to bits when I finally got a Doctor's surgery open up within walking distance. Located on the downstairs floor of Boots, from the moment you walk in you can sense the efficiency. You MUST book an appointment, however, if you are desperate and there are no appointments available - there is a walk-in clinic right next door. I have been going here for several years now and have only been delayed for an appointment once. The appointment times are pretty convenient, but as you can imagine; it's a very busy surgery. If you don't require an emergency appointment, it's best to call after 10am - if you do, call as early as possible. I've regularly had appointments the same day or the next day. The worst thing is not having a dedicated Doctor. The Doctor's and Nurses have always been great, but it would be nice to have someone you have dealt with before when you revisit. That being said, I've found this surgery to be clean, reliable and accommodating in terms of opening hours. read more

It's fine. That's as much as I can say so far. I was attracted to this surgery because of the extended opening hours and because, basically, they were close to me and taking patients. The staff on reception are very pleasant, although the morning I went to register there was only one so the wait was long. Intake assessment is a few forms and measuring your own height, weight and blood pressure. I gave myself 3 attempts at getting a nice BP measurement as the horrific prospect of knowing my weight after over a year of avoidance had sent my systolic sky-rocketing. I returned the following week to see if I was set up and had been given an NHS number and was told I was good to go. I asked to be set up for the online booking. First of all they gave me the wrong details, so I had to go back. When they gave me the proper ones, my account had the wrong address and they'd misspelled my name. I also had no option to book appointments. They fixed the errors when I emailed but told me to call about the booking. After 15 minutes on hold I was cut off and gave up. Multiple emails went unanswered. Eventually went back on and they reset it or something so could book. At last! It's not too easy to get an appointment if you work. The extended hours don't really seem to translate to appointments at those times. You could definitely be waiting weeks. On arrival for your appointment, you check in using a touch screen which saves time. It gives an estimate of the time to wait but that was actually wildly inaccurate when I went. It claimed things were running to schedule but there was actually a 20 minute wait. I occupied myself by almost getting trapped in their bathroom which has a very dodgy lock and using the Boots free WiFi. Actual consultation was adequate. I kind of missed the pleasant GPs in the random walk-in clinics in Canada or my lovely one at home. This definitely feels more like a walk-in effort. All in all, it's alright. Reception are friendly and it's nice to book online, even if it ends up being for the far distant future. read more

Pros - It's in town Cons - It's in town I moved to this surgery from my previous one in Handsworth as I got fed up with taking the bus up Soho Road every time I got ill. It's so much more convenient being in town! I find all the doctors and nurses to be extremely professional and I am happy with the service they provide. If only it was easier to get an appointment! It seems that if you don't call them at 8.30am on the morning that you want the appointment then you are pretty much screwed. Also, as much as I hated going up to Handsworth, it can be just as daunting to have to go into the city centre when you feel like a pile of warm crap. read more

I moved to this GP when I moved from 5 Ways to the city centre and this is the now the nearest one. It is very handy that it's in the large Boots on the High Street that is the Boots I frequent anyway. So the location and services are pretty good but what's a huge let down that they have a 0845 number. As most of us just have mobiles now, this is a costly call every time I call. Also, they only make routine appointments for a couple of weeks in advance so sometimes I have to keep trying to get an appointment when I am in town. I can imagine it's tougher for those who work standard hours and have to fit this in around that as at least I have flexibility. Touch wood I have used my GP only for routine check-ups so I tend to pop in when passing to make the appointment. However, the doctors and nurses are all pretty good and have lots of advice to offer to pre-empt any illness read more

MUST READ! I am a student in birmingham living away from home so when moving GP surgeries I was a bit hesitant as I am used to my normal GP back at home. However, I made a brave decision to join this medical centre which I REGRET! Firstly, lets start with the RECEPTION STAFF- apart from one lady called Josie who is always really pleasant and helpful to talk to- they all sound like they have a problem and your bothering them when you call in. One experience I had was when I received a text message to book a telephone conversation with a doctor about test results and the lady I spoke to refused to give me an appointment even though I was in the que waiting on the phone for 1 whole hour. THEN DR NYE who is meant to be the "head" of the surgery- he read me my results and told me that i shouldnt be feeling "that bad" to which I explained that I had the same symptoms for over a year and he refused to believe me saying "well you shouldnt be"- and to which he replied I should "change my attitude" and laughed at me in mockery saying "well thats the drugs side effects" when I explained to him I couldnt take a specific medication for its side effects. He DID NOT offer any alternatives of OTC medication I could take that could help and didn't ask me if I needed any help. As a pharmacy student I know how important health care is and treating the public and as a student we are taught that patient care comes first- FROM A DOCTOR i saw no care, no effort and he hung up the phone and left me feeling lost, confused and overwhelmed. IN ADDITION- i visited the doctors about acne. I told the doctor that I had previously had sensitivity to benzoyl peroxide and that I didn't think I was able to take the Duac cream that she was prescribing for me. Yet she insisted that I used the cream and that "it would be fine". I used the cream as per her instructions and ended up having AN ALLERGIC REACTION all over my face to which my skin was BURNT, PEELING, PUSSING and i was left scarred, embarrassed and scared. I then tried booking another appointment to speak to the doctor about this and explained it was an EMERGENCY and the reception staff explained "it wasnt there problem and i should visit a pharmacy" Apart from a few really good doctors (such as Dr Wood) experience I have had at this surgery has left me feeling underwhelmed, scared that this is the care that people are trusting and these are the people that people are going to for their HEALTH. If your looking for a GP surgery that will HELP you, SUPPORT you and LOOK at the patients best interests, believe me this is not the one for you. I am honestly scared that this is their definition of "patient centred care"- and believe me I will be taking this further. read more