Call your surgery and make an appointment to see your doctor. Check with your practice how to do this. For example, you may have to telephone your practice at a particular time if you want an appointment that day. It is very important that you keep your appointment and try to arrive on time. If you can’t keep your appointment you should let your doctor know as early as possible. This will mean that someone else can have your appointment.

Government guidelines say that your doctor should try to see you within 48 hours of your asking for an appointment. However, in some cases you may have to wait longer. If you are not feeling well and need to see a doctor immediately, most GP surgeries offer emergency appointments or hold ‘open surgeries’. Open surgeries operate on a ‘first come, first served’ basis, so you may have to wait for some time before a doctor can see you.

In many practices you will be able to speak to a doctor or nurse on the telephone, but you will need to phone the practice at an agreed time or be available for your doctor to call you back. Some problems can be dealt with over the phone, which will save you travelling to the surgery, as well as a long wait in the waiting room. Check with your practice whether it has emergency appointments, open surgeries or a triage system and ask staff how they work.

Your local pharmacist can advise on minor illnesses. These include:

• aches and pains
• allergies
• common drugs
• eye infections
• stomach problems
• skin conditions
• women’s health issues, including treatment for thrush.

Your pharmacy may run clinics for certain conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Your pharmacist can also help you to decide whether you need to see a doctor. You can talk to your pharmacist in confidence and don’t need to make an appointment.