Doctor shares reasons why your GP might be running late - and what you can do about it

NHS GP Partner and GP Partner Tim Mercer has taken to social media platform TikTok to shed light on why your GP appointment might be running late, and what steps you can take if this happens.

According to Dr Mercer, delays can often be attributed to the GP dealing with a patient who has a complex medical issue or multiple issues. While appointment lengths can vary across different regions, some doctors may offer 10-minute slots.

However, recognising that many of his patients present with more complex medical problems or multiple issues, Dr Mercer has started offering 15-minute consultations. Responding to a query from one of his followers about how late it is acceptable for a GP to run and whether there's a point at which you should leave, Dr Mercer explained that it largely depends on the needs of his patients and the demographic that most frequently uses his surgery.

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He acknowledged that he sometimes still runs behind schedule, albeit less often than before when he had 10-minute appointments.

He explained: "I've accumulated at my surgery a number of patients with chronic, complex medical conditions who will only see me for an appointment. It's been difficult to get an appointment with me because I've been having to take on more duty doctor and supervisory roles recently, especially with the half term holidays.

"So patients making an appointment with me when they can get one will wait usually two weeks, over which period of time, often their condition waxes and wanes and other things develop and their other symptoms they want to talk about when they finally arrive."

Dr Mercer notes that, in addition to current symptoms, there may be new issues his patients wish to discuss, and this could extend beyond the standard 15-minute slot.

He must also attend to tasks such as issuing sick notes, checking past referrals, and updates on patient lives within the tight consultative periods, which he admits may overlap with subsequent appointments. Furthermore, according to Dr Mercer, unexpected occurrences can cause delays; he recalls one particular day when they resulted in a half-hour backlog.

Dr Mercer shared his experience of a challenging day at the surgery, recounting: "I send a message to reception to say 'please can you apologise to patients when they arrive and make them a drink because I'm running half an hour late' which reception offered to do. The patient said 'this is f**king ridiculous, why do I phone up at 8am to get an appointment and then he's running half an hour late' and stormed out of the practice."

He compared the relatively short delay to the much longer waits at A&E, which can be up to 12 hours, and at minor injuries units, where backlogs can reach eight or nine hours. Dr Mercer questioned: "Is half an hour wit for a GP that knows you for all your complex conditions and has pledged to see you for as many problems as you can bring really that bad a thing?"

Public opinion seems to echo his sentiment, with one member of the community commenting: "I was in one surgery that could often run 45 minutes late but it was accepted because the GP took the time for every patient where it was needed. It was annoying but if you needed the time you got it."

Another person pointed out: "As long as the patient is informed at reception I don’t see the problem. If it’s inconvenient they could at least be offered a rescheduled appointment there and then."