Thursday 2nd October
Why are GP surgeries in England introducing a Digital Front Door?
The shift from analogue to digital will be key in delivering an NHS that is fit for the future.
For further information visit, https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-term-plan
Wednesday 1st October 2025
Did you know that you can directly access information and submit requests 24/7 through our Digital Front Door?
Tuesday 30th September 2025
Did you know that you can directly book many appointments 24/7 through our Digital Front Door?
Monday 29th September 2025
Today we will explain how our ‘on the day’ and routine’ appointments are triaged through our Digital Front Door…
Our ‘on the day’ and ‘routine’ appointments are triaged by a Duty Team, which includes a Partner GP, Doctor and nurse.
Just visit danebridge.org.uk from 8.00am each day.
If you struggle to read the animation, please visit –
https://www.danebridge.org.uk/category/practicenews/ – where you will be able to view the individual imagery.
Sunday 28th September 2025
Over the next week, we wish to welcome all patients to our Digital Front Door…
Our Digital Front Door – makes it easy for you to manage your healthcare, complete a triage request, book available appointments, and communicate with our team.
visit: danebridge.org.uk
If you’re not digitally enabled…
Please do not be concerned, as our Patient Services Team will be able to complete a triage request on your behalf, book available appointments, or answer any questions that you may have.
If you struggle to read the animation, please visit –
https://www.danebridge.org.uk/category/practicenews/ – where you will be able to view the individual imagery.
27th March 2025
What happens when I request a GP appointment?
This is something that has come up a few times in our recent feedback, and I agree that understanding what we are doing may be helpful for you to understand why you sometimes see the messages that appear on our digital front door.
GP appointments are the only appointments on the digital front door that are triaged; other options are linked directly to our appointment book, allowing you to book directly from the website. So if you see a no availability pop up for appointment for nurse or musculoskeletal team appointment then that means that there are no appointment available to book, in most cases new appointment become available each working day the exception to this would be when a member of staff is away from the practice for some reason such as holiday or sickness.
We have two options for GP appointments: ‘Same Day or Soon’ and ‘Planned or Routine’. ’ When you request either of these, you are then invited to complete a triage request.
These triage requests are reviewed daily by the triage team, consisting of two doctors and one nurse. The number of triage forms available each day is directly linked to the number of appointments we have available. For same-day requests, this is related to the number of appointments available on that day. For ‘planned or routine’ appointments, this is linked to the number of appointments we have available within one week. The reason we limit triage requests based on appointment availability is that we have a finite capacity and do not want to send out appointment booking invitations when there are no appointments available, as I would not wish to cause this level of frustration to anyone.
There are three common responses to a triage request;
- You are sent a message back to book an appointment either routine or same day depending on the clinical urgency of your request.
- Your name is added to a list for the triage team to contact the same day – this may be because it is felt more information is needed or because what you need is something simple which doesn’t need a full appointment (for example, requesting blood tests)
- You are sent a link directing you to an alternative service, such as a local pharmacy or eye care services.
We are aware that the current low availability of routine triage capacity is causing frustration, and we are working with the PPG (Patient Participation Group) on how best to manage this going forward. If you would like to be part of the PPG, please follow this link to apply and learn about upcoming meetings.
I have a booking link. What happens now?
The booking links for direct online appointments are the same system as those sent for appointments after triage. You use your NHS number or Date of Birth to log in to the system, and you will be able to view appointments to book, forms to complete, or documents related to your request.
For same-day appointments, the appointments become visible gradually throughout the working day – this is to avoid the whole afternoon being booked and all the morning appointments being unused. For same-day appointments, we monitor links sent to patients. If there are clinical concerns or the appointment is for a young child, we will prompt patients to book the link if it is not used. We will hold appointments for those who received links in the morning until approximately 1:30 p.m. After this point, appointments may be needed for patients who contact us later in the day with urgent problems.
For non-urgent appointments, the appointments become available 7 days before the appointment date. The link for non-urgent appointments will allow you to book an appointment anytime within a 14-day period starting from the day the link is sent.
Once you have successfully booked an appointment, you will receive a text message or email confirming the date, time and location of the appointment. You will also receive a reminder message, and in both messages, you will find a link to log back into the system if you need to cancel or change your appointment for any reason.
August 2024
Thank you for your support over the last few months as we transitioned to the new triage system. Many of you are using the system to book appointments and request support from the practice. You can now request a GP appointment using the PACO system.
The team, which always includes a senior doctor, triages all GP appointment requests. This means we review the information you have given us and make a clinical decision regarding the urgency and what team members would be best to help you. We have written our own triage form as we know the repetitive nature of the patch form was irritating to some patients.
Once the triage team has reviewed your form, the most likely responses are:
- A phone call from the triage team if your concern is urgent or you are requesting a home visit.
- A message (Text and email) informing you of the triage decision, which may include a link to book an appointment, advice on managing your problem or information about a prescription.
- A message advising you are suitable for the Pharmacy First scheme will include a link so you can tell us which pharmacy would be the most convenient for you to be referred to.
- A message directing you to an alternative service, such as the eye care service
Booking your appointment
A large advantage of the new system is to give you control over your health by giving you the power to book, rearrange and cancel your appointment without having to wait on hold to the practice. The link for appointment booking takes you to a secure website, which will need your NHS number or date of birth. You can then select from available dates, times and team members to book your appointment. Once you have booked your appointment, you will receive a link allowing you to cancel and rebook your appointment if the problem has been resolved or the appointment time is no longer convenient. You can not change your appointment time if it is less than 2 hours before the appointment as this does not give us time to re-use the appointment time.
We encourage anyone who can to use the website as it will give you the greatest flexibility. If you need support with this, please let the practice know. The hope is that this will free the phone lines for those unable to use the website (Non-Digital patients). We want to give patients who can not use the website a similar experience accessing the surgery as those who can use the digital system. So, anyone who can not use the online system should call the practice, and the reception team can book an appointment and request triage like patients using the website.
What is the pharmacy’s first scheme?
A Government-developed scheme means pharmacists can see specific simple medical conditions and prescribe treatment if needed. The conditions included in this are urine infections, sinus infections, and ear infections (in under-18s). This is different from simply walking into the pharmacy and asking for advice, as you will have an appointment, and if the pharmacy cannot manage the problem, they will refer you back to the practice.
What is the eye care service?
The local emergency eye care service provides emergency access to opticians who can better assess urgent eye problems than the GP team. The eye care service will see issues ranging from sudden loss of vision to new floating lights in the eyes and red or painful eyes.
Recent Posts
Research request
Friends and Family Feedback for August 2025
Why are GP surgeries in England introducing a Digital Front Door?
Recent Comments
21st June 2024
Do you need an appointment to see either a Physiotherapist, a Nurse
or arrange a blood test?
You can now book selected appointments directly from our website at any time.
The appointments available are for routine care only, not urgent problems.
Booking links for these appointments will be active for 14 days; the number of appointments for different staff changes day by day, and you may find times when there is no availability. We encourage you to try again on a different day and you will still be able to use your existing booking link to do this, as long as it is within the 14 days. We monitor appointment availability, but if you keep finding no available appointments to book, please telephone the practice.
Physiotherapy Appointments
Musculoskeletal (MSK) team (physiotherapy appointments).
You will need to complete a form describing your symptoms, and then you will be sent a link to book your MSK appointment. The team will look at the information you enter on the form the next working day. If the team feels it would be better for you to be seen by a different clinical practitioner, then we will help to facilitate.
Our in-house musculoskeletal specialists are first-contact physiotherapy practitioners and can see any patient over 18 years old with a joint or muscle issue. Their focus is to diagnose and offer treatment in one appointment. They can also arrange scans or refer you for further care to the hospital team if required. They do not provide massage or long-term courses of treatment. If you think you need a long-term course of physiotherapy, you can self-refer to the physiotherapy team at the Victoria Infirmary using this link.
Nurse team appointments
Smear tests (Cervical Smear Appointments)
If you are due for your smear test, you will receive a letter from NHS England and a Text message from the practice.
Please do not arrange this appointment before your smear is due, as the Laboratory will not process an early sample. If you have a concern, such as bleeding or discharge, please complete a Patch.
Over 50s NHS health check
For any patients aged 45 to 75 with no pre-existing health condition, a health check can be booked, which includes height, weight, blood pressure check, and blood tests.
Injections
This is for patients who already have regular injections at the practice, including B12, cancer-related hormone injections, and contraceptive hormone injections. Please consider when your injection is due, as the nursing team must work to strict guidelines and cannot give you your injection any earlier than prescribed; we do not want to waste your time.
Travel Vaccinations
You will be asked to complete a form with details of which countries you will be travelling to and the dates for your intended travel. The form will be reviewed by our nursing team, who will then be able to advise you on what, if any, vaccinations are required and the timings of when these vaccinations need to be carried out before your travel.
Childhood immunisations
Your child’s first set of immunisations usually takes place at their 8-week baby check, so you do not need to worry about booking an appointment for this set (unless they cannot be given at the 8-week appointment for some reason). Other childhood immunisation appointments can be booked. The nurses must work to strict timelines/guidelines when administering childhood immunisations; please consider this when booking your child’s immunisation appointments as if it is too early, you may be turned away on the day, and we do not want to waste your time. If you are unsure of when the immunisations are due, please call the practice, and a team member can help with this.
Blood tests
You can book blood tests at the practice through our website. For information, we only have one Phlebotomist working at the practice for half a day, five days a week, so numbers for these appointments are limited. If you cannot book a suitable/convenient appointment with the practice Phlebotomist, follow this link to book a blood test appointment at the Victoria Infirmary, Northwich. The Victoria Infirmary has multiple Phlebotomists working daily, so more appointments are available. They also have appointments in the evenings and at weekends.
Blood Tests can only be booked when you have already been given the request form, either from the practice or another medical team. The form cannot be requested on the day of the appointment. Remember, if you have booked a blood test at the Infirmary, you cannot attend without a pre-arranged blood test form. If you think you need a blood test, then you need to complete a patch.
We hope that this will make booking appointments easier and free up the phone lines and reception team for patient support that cannot happen via the website.