Woodlands Medical Practice - Oldham

Natalie M.

I have just requested my repeat prescription of HRT and have been told I have to check my own weight and blood pressure before it can be dispensed. So the first issue here is that I could just make up the numbers myself. Secondly this was not checked before the medicine was originally prescribed. The response from reception was yes I could make it up but would be putting my health at risk. No what is putting my health at risk is the ignorance of your doctors. My iron is extremely low and has been for years due to the incompetance of this surgery. I have an intolerance to oral iron but instead of them referring me for an iron infusion I am told to carry on taking the oral iron. In September I had several weeks off work as the iron was making me so ill. It got up to the measly number 30 and Dr Kemp called to advise me it was reassuringly normal. I didn't agree as it should have been more considering the suffering I had to go through to get it there. Iron causes constipation which in turn makes my anal fissure bleed and my fistula to get blocked and bleed. Oh yes but they aren't concerned with the risk of sepsis! I am now at crisis point, do I resign from my job before I get dismissed for my poor absense record. The response from the practise manager is he is sorry to hear this but not sorry enough for them to do anything about it. I struggled for years with the side effects of my fluctuating hormones and even sat in front of Dr Evans crying about how awful I felt 3 weeks out of every 4. She may as well have got a magazine out and started reading it for the lack of empathy shown. HRT was only prescribed after I had fought tooth and nail to get it having to see the gynaecology department at Oldham hospital and them being baffled by my struggles. Oh yes and the same gynaecologist spotted that I have Adenomyosis which the surgery have failed to identify. This was immediately spotted after referring to a CT scan I had for my fistula. On a final point. I have been suffering with a fistula since 2018 which the surgery are happy to let me manage by myself. This is after Dr Sharma didn't deal with my issue which led to this. Thanks a lot Woodlands, you have a lot to answer for!

Stan W.

Arrived without appointment at 0725 am
Appointment with Doctor Kemp sorted within the hour Very long chat discussing my problems and very thorough history check done by doctor. Then organised to have ECG done whilst there and was done within 10 minutes.
Back to doctor to discuss results and forward plan and medication sorted.
Brilliant service by reception staff and doctor and I felt very reassured that I wasn't dropping off the plate that day.
Massive thank you.

Stan Wolf

T B.

I’m extremely disappointed with the repeated poor service from the reception staff. The reception staff at this practice are appallingly rude and need to be seriously investigated for how they speak to patients. On multiple occasions, I’ve called at 8 am, waited in the queue, only to have my call disconnected. Today, after finally getting through, I was told there were no appointments left in an unprofessional and unsympathetic tone, without any apology or basic courtesy.

I understand that same day appointments may not always be available and that this is beyond their control. However, the way staff communicate with patients absolutely is. A little compassion and professionalism when dealing with people in pain or distress should be the bare minimum in a healthcare setting. This kind of behaviour is completely unacceptable and needs to be addressed immediately.

Jemma R.

Joined Woodlands in 2021 always had great experience with all staff, not a regular but when needed been great, new phone system with call back at busy times has helped, been told the online contact through their website is good but not yet tried. They use text messages to collect health updates which I prefer, over speaking to someone or attending practice. Overall been great.

A B.

Myself and my children have been patients at this surgery for many years and have always been happy with the care we've received. Appointments not always easy to get but that's the same for all gp surgeries! All the staff.. Nurses, Dr's, HCA's and most of the reception staff have always been lovely and helpful.

Abdul M.

My travel vaccination gets cancelled last minute, for which I had taken the afternoon off and took my children out of school early. Instead of being apologetic, the receiption lady was rude and expected me to just deal with it and book another appointment. She was also short on the phone, felt like she wanted to get off the phone.

This isn't the first time the receptionist was rude. Reading other comments, this receptionist seems to have had a lack of customer service training. Poor, poor.

Aud S.

I went in there today to register as I’m homeless and they refused to register me without an address , I’m homeless I have a care of address, and they’ve kept saying I needed proof of address,,, no I do not need a proof of address ,, the government guidelines will tell you I do not need a proof of address, or id that you took from me,,, you discriminated against a deaf homeless person and refused to register me..

You need to teach your staff properly and not have someone on the front desk who doesn’t know the law or a practice manager to whom she shouted at me and told me I was wrong!

I’m hoping that you get this sorted out before I take it to civil

Paul M.

Friendly & helpful staff, always happy to help and assist. The Doctors are approachable and very reassuring. Dr Thompson & Dr Kemp are both fantastic doctors. They should be proud of their achievements at Woodlands medical practice.