We have only 4 weeks left of our business-as-usual staffing and hours before Kirihimete and the New Year!
We’re already getting busier and busier as we get closer to December, and we would like to remind our patients to please book ahead of time if you know you will need an appointment – e.g. for a review for your medication, for a medical, for an extension of a regular medical form, etc. – as our doctors are booking up fast.
Please read on for more important information.
Our Kirihimete & New Year Hours
We will be closed on the statutory holidays: Wed 25 Dec, Thurs 26 Dec, Wed 1 Jan, Thurs 2 Jan.
We will have reduced hours on the remaining weekdays of the Kirihimete and New Year weeks - i.e. Mon 23 Dec, Tues 24 Dec, Fri 27 Dec; and Mon 30 Dec, Tues 31 Dec, and Fri 3 Jan.
During our reduced hours we will:
Be open 9AM-3PM only
Have a skeleton staff with only one GP and one nurse working
Be making same-day bookings only
Be seeing patients for acute/urgent needs only
Our last day of usual staffing and hours will be Fri 20 Dec, and we will resume usual staffing and hours from Mon 6 Jan.
Need an appointment?
You may not be able to see your usual GP
Our doctors are booking up fast and, if you're needing an appointment before the end of the year, you may not be able to see your preferred GP.
Our staff will always do their best to offer you another option to ensure you’re seen as quickly as possible, but we cannot book you into appointments that don’t exist: if a particular doctor is fully booked, you will need to see somebody else.
For example, Dr Brenda Gibson is currently booked up until early January 2025 already. While cancellations with her may come up, we cannot guarantee you will be able to see her, and our staff will offer you an appointment with one of our other clinicians instead if you need to be seen sooner.
We have two locums, Dr Roger Jubert and Dr Sjoerd Meijer, who generally have availability within 1-3 days, and we also have a Nurse Practitioner Intern, Jasper, who generally has availability Mon-Thurs.
We understand that at times certain patients may have a preference for seeing a female clinician: unfortunately, as Dr Gibson is our only female GP currently, this is not always a possibility, but we can provide a female chaperone during your appointment if this is helpful to you.
Organise your prescriptions early!
We would like to remind you to organise your prescriptions sooner rather than later to ensure your doctor has time to issue your next prescription and to avoid delays due to last-minute rushes around Christmas time. It's also possible a doctor may need to see you for a review before they can issue your next prescription, and requesting your prescription early gives you more time to arrange this appointment if it's needed.
And if you're heading away on holiday, make sure you've packed your medication and you've got enough to last you! We can't send prescriptions overseas, and while we can send them to any pharmacy within Aotearoa NZ, it may not be possible to do this within the timeframe that you need it.
Acute appointments
While we try to accommodate same-day acute needs whenever possible, we cannot guarantee that your usual GP will be available and you may need to see a different clinician. You may also need to be triaged by a nurse first to determine if your issue is acute or not.
By “acute” we generally mean issues that are causing severe pain or discomfort or that are highly suspicious/concerning in nature and should be assessed that same day.
If we think your issue is acute but have absolutely no availability, we will give you advice on whether ED or the After Hours clinic would be most appropriate for you.
If your concern is not acute, you will need to either wait until your preferred GP is available or book with one of our other clinicians when available.
Continue to let us know about any Covid-19/cold/flu-like symptoms if you have an in-person appointment
The end of winter doesn't mean the end of infectious illnesses, and we've been making it clear for a long time now that Covid-19 isn't our only concern when it comes to preventing the spread of viruses and infections.
This is a particularly timely reminder given that a whooping cough epidemic has been declared in Aotearoa NZ today.
If you are booking or coming in for an in-person appointment, you must let us know about any Covid-19/cold/flu-like symptoms, no matter how mild.
Two of our doctors - Dr Harris and Dr Meijer - are unable to see patients with any such symptoms for personal reasons.
We have precautions in place to help protect our other clinicians, staff, and patients, and we ask that you please follow our guidance to avoid delays in your care.
Don’t shoot the messenger:
please be respectful towards our staff
Our staff work hard to help us provide the best services we can to you, but, like all GP clinics, we are working with limited funding, resources, and time, and our clinicians have regulations that they must adhere to.
Please do not harass our reception or nursing staff if you are unable to see the doctor you would prefer to see, if you are asked to make an appointment for a prescription, if you are unhappy with a particular fee, or if they pass on some other message that you are displeased with. These things are not within their control, and we have zero tolerance for that kind of behaviour.
As much as we would love to have an endless supply of appointments and funding - especially around Kirihimete! - we can only do so much. You can check out our FAQs page if you would like more information on our fees, on getting prescriptions, on why an appointment may be needed, and more.
Ngaa mihi nui.
