Valens Medical Partnership
Morpeth Surgery, Wellway, Morpeth, NE61 1BJContact details and opening times
Patient ratings and reviews
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Reviews
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Review titled Impersonal service
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 11 July 2023
Appointments are difficult to get ( which I appreciate is reflected nationally) however the general “vibe” of the whole practice seems one of disinterest with new signage placed asking patients to use machines to register and no means of querying things unless you email/ have a lengthy phone wait. Once again the phone system is off putting and inaccessible for those who do not have access to phones during working hours or those who are elderly or have additional needs. In addition there is no “in house” complaints system for minor issues - in effect no way of making the practice aware of their patient’s viewpoint without escalating things to a formal complaint which is a) inappropriate b) costly for the NHS and c) unlikely to improve matters going forward. Having said this, it is unfortunate for the staff as due to the limitations of the system, they must bear the brunt of the complaints and concerns. If I were to make a complaint for example in a shop or restaurant - generally you can speak to someone or email directly. Thus customers feel that they are heard. This is not the fault of the staff but the management structure and systems in place. I have waited several weeks for a routine appointment only to be told that it wasn’t needed, therefore resulting in time off work and time spent booking the appointment wasted ( in addition to the health professional’s time).
Visited July 2023
Valens Medical Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled No service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 10 May 2023
Literally can't get in touch with anyone. Phoning they don't answer or cut you off. Go online and it says no more requests. Popped to surgery, receptionist finished conversation before acknowledging I was there only to be told she couldn't help as it was too late and to phone. It was 4.30 in the afternoon, supposedly peak time and there wasn't one person in the waiting room.
Visited May 2023
Valens Medical Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled Wait times on hold
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 11 April 2023
Currently the website service is down for ‘Easter holidays’ however this is on the Tuesday which is a working day. I have now been attempting contact for 2:26 with an hour and a half of this being unable to connect as it shows ‘user busy’ I have now connected and am still on hold an hour and 10 minutes later. I understand a high demand after practice being closed for bank holidays but surely this is accounted for. Serious symptoms may be missed if people don’t have hours to be dedicated to getting in contact. There are multiple branches and not enough phone operators to handle the patient size.
Visited April 2023
Valens Medical Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled Website is not fit for purpose
Rated 3 stars out of 5
by Georgina - Posted on 03 April 2023
I received a letter asking me to contact my local surgery to arrange a routine blood test. I phoned Lynemouth Surgery and followed options on recorded message as best possible (arranging a blood test was not an option so ended up choosing GP appointment). The message included a suggestion that it might be quicker to use the online service. I went onto valens website. The site gave me the option of choosing a medical condition that I needed help with, but there was no option of requesting a blood test, so the site was no help at all to me. I am lucky that I have a mobile phone that I can put on speaker and that I have the day off so I have the time to wait which would not normally be the case when I am working. What happens to the people who can't do this? I finally got through after two attempts, one 20 minutes and one 36 minutes.
Visited April 2023
Valens Medical Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled Unable to get in touch by telephone or via online service
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 12 April 2024
Online service constantly unavailable, tells you to call, voice message tells you call cannot be answered and to use online service. Apparently, they can't process the online requests for routine services like repeat sick notes and prescriptions because they need all staff on phones to triage everyone, so someone with a routine request has to sit in the queue to call and they are then stopping someone who really does need to speak to someone from getting through. The whole point of the online service for routine requests is to get those people off the phone lines, but this ridiculous company can't seem to grasp that. It is utterly pointless being with this practice now, which is a shame because some of the GPs are brilliant and have looked after me and my family for over 20 years. Sadly I'm leaving because of abysmal management. I want to ensure that I have healthcare when I need it, not "possibly in the next 3 weeks". It's no wonder people ring 111 or go to A&E and please don't blame patients for this, they have no other options because of companies like this destroying formerly efficient and well respected GP practices.
Visited April 2023
Valens Medical Partnership has not yet replied.
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Review titled contact impossible
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 06 March 2023
Simply impossible to get in touch with this GP practice. They are not answering calls, independent on day time and how often you try. To hope for advice on any serious condition of this practice is in fact risking your health. Shame, once it was reliable.
Visited March 2023
Review titled Valens Medical Partnership
Replied on 30 July 2023
Dear patient Thank you for taking the time to raise your concerns. We are always sorry to hear when things go wrong for patients, and we strive to make our service better. Your feedback will be passed to staff. When Lintonville, Brockwell & Wellway merged, we renamed the new group Valens, and we have always tried to maintain the family practice ethic so disappointed to hear that you feel the merging of the practices has adversely effected the performance. The merge has allowed us to offer a wider range of clinical roles to ensure patient care is always at the forefront of everything that we do, whilst demand has risen sharply since Covid. Nevertheless we are conscious that patient access has been a real challenge for us over the last 12 months…… Access continues to be a priority for Valens and we continue to actively focus on this, some of the changes implemented include:- • Increased the number of staff in the role • Dedicated additional resource in the peak hour of 0800 – 0900 (this doubles the amount of people on calls to average 20 people taking calls) • Introduced new shift patterns to better suit demand profile • Pulled other departments onto Reception when wait times are too long We are also looking to introduce a new system which will include a call back facility and we continue to monitor call wait times. If you would like to discuss your concerns please call or email our complaints department on 01670 844311/ nencicb-nor.valenscomplaints@nhs.net, and a member of our team will get back to you. Once again, I am sorry to hear about your bad experience. Kind regards N Longman HR & Executive Assistant
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Review titled Professional Dedicated Team
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Andrea A - Posted on 02 November 2022
I was seen the same day very efficient team literally I can not fault the fantastic service provided here. Thank you
Visited November 2022
Review titled Valens Medical Partnership
Replied on 22 July 2023
Thank you for taking the time to thank the staff and the surgery. Your comments have been well received and have been passed to staff via our staff newsletter, and are fully appreciated by staff. Once again thank you. Natalie Longman HR & Executive Assistant
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Review titled Terrific professional and caring
Rated 5 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 24 November 2022
Great team at Morpeth doctors surgery. Yes long wait on phone I just put my phone on loudspeaker and waited. Got through sane day blood tests completed and results on the App.
Visited November 2022
Review titled Valens Medical Partnership
Replied on 22 July 2023
Thank you for taking the time to thank the staff and the surgery. Your comments have been well received and have been passed to staff via our newsletter, and are fully appreciated. Improving access for our patients is a practice priority and we are actively focused on this. Once again thank you.
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Review titled cannot get in touch with them
Rated 2 stars out of 5
by Anonymous - Posted on 04 November 2022
No body ever picks up the phone. I couldn't get through so I used the on line system to try and get a telephone consultation. It told me to ring the surgery. What is the point of this, they have a self help tick box but if you want to speak to them for something else it won't let you.
Visited October 2022
Review titled Valens Medical Partnership
Replied on 30 July 2023
Dear patient Thank you for taking the time to raise your concerns. We are always sorry to hear when things go wrong for patients, and we strive to make our service better. Your feedback will be passed to staff. Please be assured that improving access for patients is a priority for the practice, and we are actively focused on this. We have implemented changes since your review, to improve access, which include:- • Increased the number of staff in the role • Dedicated additional resource in the peak hour of 0800 – 0900 (this doubles the amount of people on calls to average 20 people taking calls) • Introduced new shift patterns to better suit demand profile • Pulled other departments onto Reception when wait times are too long We are also looking to introduce a new system which will include a call back facility and new online service. If you would like to discuss your concerns please call or email our complaints department on 01670 844311/ nencicb-nor.valenscomplaints@nhs.net, and a member of our team will get back to you. Once again, I am sorry to hear about your bad experience. Kind regards N Longman HR & Executive Assistant
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Review titled Long delay in getting through by phone
Rated 1 star out of 5
by Dr. Terence Scaife - Posted on 08 October 2022
In took 47mins for the phone to be answered on the 6th Oct 2022. This problem continues since the new system was put in place despite promises that it would be resolved. What is the cause of the problem? When will it be resolved?
Visited October 2022
Valens Medical Partnership has not yet replied.