About Health - Taunton

Michael Webster

I am extremely satisfied with About Health’s appointment system and referral times. It is evident that their staff work towards a clear & precise goal to reduce waiting times, whilst providing a high level of customer service.

About Health Community Dermatology even have the option of weekend and/or evening appointments across some clinics that proves to be very useful, particularly for those in full-time employment / education, or those with other commitments & responsibilities during the week. AH also offer the facility for patients to send in photos of their condition which is followed up by a telephone consultation (if appropriate) by one of their dermatology specialists.

Clinical advice and guidance is second to none. When receiving minor surgery, their service is catered to your needs and explained in thorough detail before the procedure.

Overall, a fantastic community specialist service with prompt assessment and treatment for their patients.

Ali Wilkinson

Shambolic service. From the organisation right through to most of the clinicians. Their only saving grace is their fantastic blood clinic, who are brilliant. Completely disinterested dermatologists that do nothing more than sign your prescription. I was left with zero confidence in my treatment and support with regards to it’s impact on my health and the concerning side effects I was experiencing. Zero continuity or communication between practitioners. They have no idea who you are or your history. I had to spend my appointments explaining to them everything they needed to know to evaluate me accurately and effectively. Appointment waiting times were shocking at first but this slowly improved, so I think the overall organisation is improving and they are pulling their finger out to hire the staff they need to run a functioning service. But it continues to run at a basic level (aside from the blood clinics), there is no genuine interest in you as a patient, you’re a number and a box to check off for £80k+ a year. My dermatologist (one of them, as I was assigned a different one for every appointment, which is just a recipe for shoddy care) couldn’t even recommend a moisturiser or face wash for me to use while on my medication. He then contradicted himself and said “any is fine” after telling me 2 seconds prior that I should be careful what products I use… the same Dr also just tried to tell me that my back pain wasn’t related to my medication, when it is one of the most common and documented side effects. Bizarre. I left feeling completely confused and as though I hadn’t had a proper discharge from my treatment. There’s no where to escalate this too, as the admin team would most likely not reply to an email with this type of feedback. Overall, just a poor service.

M

I saw a Dr Mohammed Salim after waiting a year for my appointment of hairloss. By the time I saw him I had no hair (as a young women this is already upsetting) he then proceeded to make a face of disgust when he saw what was left of my hair, sarcastically said "shall we just wait and see?" To which I replied "well no considering I've been waiting a year for this appointment and nothing has changed?" To which he rudely says "well there's nothing I can do for you, it won't grow back.. okay? I'm going to discharge you bye". I was so shocked and hurt by this and I asked why this had happened, like is there a cause for this, is it related to other autoimmune diseases I have to which he SIGHED and said "you ask to many questions". As a young women experiencing complete hairloss his treatment was DISGUSTING and complaints will be made about this. Even the student nurse sat in with us seemed shocked by his behavior. Vile doctor, shocking service and I hope nobody else has to go to what I expierianced with Dr Salim in a Manchester clinic. The appointment I had waited a year for was over in less than 10 minutes with 0 examinations done.