Contact Us Online

NHS England have asked GP Practices to offer more services online to improve access for patients. Making a request online will allow you to contact your practice at a convenient time for you.

• Requests made online will be quick to submit and no need to wait in a telephone queue as the website will be able to serve many patients at the same time.
• By routing the majority of requests online, there will be fewer people telephoning the practice at 8am.
• Fewer people in the telephone queue means less time waiting for the phone to be answered.
• All requests received, whether online or by phone, will be triaged by a clinician and action taken according to clinical need.
• Some patients prefer to make written requests due to hearing difficulties or language barriers. Patchs has the ability to make requests in 33 different languages which are then translated for the Practice to triage, the response can be returned to the patient in their chosen language.
• Being able to make a request in a more relaxed environment may help you to tell us more information about your request therefore helping Practices to get you to the right place first time.
• Reducing the 8am telephone rush will reduce pressure our staff taking phone calls and allow them to take more time for patients who need to use the telephone.

All five local Practices in Lytham St Annes are introducing online services over the coming months and have decided to use the same IT system called PATCHS.

When submitting a request as a patient, Patchs asks for:

1. Your personal details

We ask for your name, sex assigned at birth, and date of birth so we can match your Patchs account with your GP record. This is important for your GP practice to verify your identity and save information to their own records. We ask for your ethnicity to help us monitor for inequalities in how patients access and use Patchs. We want to make sure that no group of patients are disadvantaged by using Patchs.

2. Your contact details

We ask for your phone number and email address so your GP practice knows how best to contact you, and so we can update you with any important changes about Patchs. We ask for your home address as an extra check for your GP practice to make sure your Patchs account matches your GP record.

When submitting a request up as a carer, Patchs asks for:

1. Your personal details (carer)

We ask for your name and relationship to the patient so we can match your details with information held by the GP practice. This is important for your GP practice to verify your identity and relationship to the patient.

2. Your contact details (carer)

We ask for your phone number and email address so your GP practice knows how best to contact you, and so we can update you with any important changes about Patchs.

3. Personal details of the person you care for

We ask for the person you care for's name, sex assigned at birth, and date of birth so we can match your Patchs account with their GP record. This is important for your GP practice to verify their identity and save information to their own records. We ask for their ethnicity to help us monitor for inequalities in how patients access and use Patchs. We want to make sure that no group of patients are disadvantaged by using Patchs.

4. Contact details of the person you care for

We ask for the person you care for's home address as an extra check for their GP practice to make sure your Patchs account matches their GP record.

When viewing a message sent by your GP practice when you don't have an account, Patchs asks for:

• Your (or the person you care for's) date of birth

We ask for this information so we can compare it to your GP record. That way we can be sure that the message has been sent to the correct person.

Yes, every system that is approved for use in the NHS has to meet strict cyber security and data standards set by NHS England in order to be offered on a national procurement framework. PATCHS has met these standards and Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) chose to fund this product for use in Practices across the region.

All patient information is held securely and requests are saved to patient records to ensure that all information is up to date and accurate.

If you're a Patchs patient who has moved to a new GP practice and want to transfer your Patchs account, you can do this from your NEW practice's Patchs landing page.

1. First, go to your new practice’s website and go to the PATCHS landing page.
2. Select the Transfer an existing PATCHS account to [the name of your new practice] link at the bottom of the page.
3. Now, log into PATCHS.
4. You will be taken to the account transfer page, which explains that you should only transfer your account if both you (and any patients you care for) are registered at the new practice.
5. To continue with the transfer, you should select the Transfer Patchs account button.
6. A message will come up asking if you are sure you want to transfer your Patchs account. Confirm the transfer by selecting the ‘Yes, I'm sure button’.
7. You will then see a confirmation message
8. Clicking the OK button will take you to your requests and messages page at your new practice, from where you can submit a new request for help.

To update your address details, you should:

1. Log into Patchs.
2. From your Patchs drop-down menu (this can be found in the top right-hand corner of your screen), select the Change My Details link.
3. You will be taken to the Change My Details page. Here, you can update your address details.

When you have finished, click the Save button at the bottom of the screen.

We have produced a step by step guide to help to register and link your PATCHS account through your NHS App.

View step instructions on signing up to PATCHS using the NHS App here.

Yes, PATCHS is a website in its own right and you are able to sign up without an NHS Log in or NHS App.

View step by step instructions on signing up to PATCHS without the NHS App.

We are moving away from using myGP app and advising patients to use the NHS App. This is for a number of reasons:

1. PATCHS is linked with the NHS App and NHS login so information is all in one place
2. The NHS App/NHS website provides patients with access to their health record as well the ability to access PATCHS. This includes test and investigation results, Consultant letters and health and wellbeing information.
3. The NHS App is updated regularly with new services and information meaning that patients wont have to keep changing systems
4. Reducing the number of systems that GP staff have to check will simplify and speed up the booking process meaning patients will receive a response quicker. 

We are moving away from using myGP app and advising patients to use the NHS App. This is for a number of reasons:

1. PATCHS is linked with the NHS App and NHS login so information is all in one place
2. The NHS App/NHS website provides patients with access to their health record as well the ability to access PATCHS. This includes test and investigation results, Consultant letters and health and wellbeing information.
3. The NHS App is updated regularly with new services and information meaning that patients won’t have to keep changing systems
4. Reducing the number of systems that GP staff have to check will simplify and speed up the booking process meaning patients will receive a response quicker. 

The username for the NHS App is the email address that was used to register for an account.

The NHS Login webpage will check whether an email address has already been used to create an account, simply enter the email address into the search box and press ‘continue’.

• If the email address has an account set up, it will then request the password for the account.
• If the email address does not have an account set up, it will give instructions to create an account.

Passwords can be reset by clicking the ‘Reset your password’ button which is underneath the password box. An email will be sent to the email address that was used to register the account allowing the password to be reset.

For further help and support, use the NHS login Help centre to access technical support.

The username is the email address that you used to set up the account.

Passwords can be reset by clicking the ‘Reset your password button which is underneath the password box. An email will be sent to the email address that was used to register the account allowing the password to be reset. 

You must use a unique email address to register your account with PATCHS. This is because your account will be linked to our clinical records. If you are using another person’s email address this could result in incorrect information being included in your health record or a data breach.

You can set up an email address free of charge using a email provider such as Gmail, Yahoo or Hotmail. If you are a carer for a patient refer to the question about making requests for people you care for.

We understand the available options do not represent everyone. We need to know your sex assigned at birth (rather than your gender identity) to match you to your medical record and ensure we provide relevant medical information to you.

We are still taking telephone calls from patients making requests during our Practice opening hours.

• Reception staff will complete the form on your behalf and send it to the Doctor to triage.
• The form available to the Receptionist is the same form available to patients via NHS App or PATCHS.
• We are asking patients that do have online access to make requests directly using the NHS App or PATCHS as this will reduce the telephone queue and waiting times for patients without online access.
• Our online services are open to make requests 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Requests will be dealt with in order of clinical need during our Practice opening hours.

The form is designed to collect as much information from you as possible at the outset so that we can deal with your request at the first time of presentation. This should save time overall because we won’t have to contact you again requesting further details or clarification. Please do take the time to answer the questions and provide photographs if you can when the system asks for them.

We have had feedback from patients suggesting that taking time to complete the form as helped them to think about their problem and symptoms. Having the information written down will help you to remember them when discussing this issue with the clinician at your appointment.

You can make requests for your child using PATCHS. If you are a registered as a patient at the same practice as your child, use these instructions to set up your access If you are not registered at the same practice as your child, use these instructions to set up your access.

You can make requests for a person you care for using PATCHS. If you are a registered as a patient at the same practice as the person you care for, use these instructions to set up your access.

If you are not registered at the same practice as the person you care for, use these instructions to set up your access.

You can request and view repeat prescriptions by logging in to your NHS App or the NHS website and have them sent to a pharmacy of your choice.

Some prescriptions are not available as repeat prescriptions. For these medications please submit a new request to your practice.

To request a repeat prescription using the NHS App:

1. Go to the homepage or Services.
2. Select Request repeat prescriptions.

If you need your medicine urgently, contact your GP surgery. If it's out of hours, go to NHS 111 online or call 111. Your medicine request needs to be approved by the GP before it can be prepared by the pharmacy. You can view your Requested medicines to see when they've been approved.

Each medicine may be labelled:

• Waiting GP approval
• Approved by GP
• Rejected by GP

Once the medicine has been approved, the request is automatically sent to the pharmacy if you have nominated one.

A video guide on requesting repeat prescriptions is also available on YouTube.

You can request prescriptions by logging in to PATCHS. To request a prescription using PATCHS:

1. Go to your Practice’s website and click on ‘Prescriptions’
2. Click ‘Use Online Services’ and then ‘Use PATCHS’
3. Click ‘Contact my GP Practice’
4. Log in to PATCHS using your username and password
5. Follow the instructions to complete your request

You can request a fit/sick note by logging in to PATCHS and following the instructions below:

1. Go to your Practice’s website and click on ‘Get a Sick Note for Work’
2. Click ‘Use Online Services’ and then ‘Use PATCHS’
3. Click ‘Contact my GP Practice’
4. Log in to PATCHS using your username and password
5. Follow the instructions to complete your request

For submitted requests our response times can be up to 48 hours, although in Practice opening hours this is usually much quicker than this.

If PATCHS suspects that the issue you are contacting the Practice about is an emergency, patients will see a message alerting them and advising them to attend the urgent and emergency services in the area rather than continuing with their request.

There is support to help patients get online!

1. Check out our Step by Step Guides
2. More detailed work instructions are also available by contacting your practice
3. Look out for a face to face digital drop in session at your practice

If you still need further support, contact your Practice to ask for a digital appointment with one of our team who be able to help you.

Each Practice decides when to allow online requests. Currently Holland House are live with clinical and non-clinical requests which are open 24 hours a day and seven days a week. 

When a request is made through PATCHS, you will receive an email confirming that your request has been submitted and another when it is completed on the system.

If the Practice needs more information from you or would like to arrange an appointment, staff from the Practice will contact you via email, text or telephone.

If you do not respond to a question asked by your GP practice within a specified period of time, your request will be automatically closed.

This is help your GP practice manage their workload and ensure they can respond to all patients as quickly as possible. You will typically have 1 week to respond to a message, though this could be shorter or longer depending on your GP practice.

You should always respond to your GP practice messages ASAP, because if you take too long they may not be able to respond in a clinically appropriate timeframe. For example, if you have a medical problem that should be dealt with on the same day (like an infection requiring antibiotics), but you don't respond until later when the GP practice has already closed, you will be putting yourself at risk.

If your request has been automatically closed but you still need to speak to your GP practice about it, you should submit another Patchs request.

Our Patient Participation Group (PPG) has been informed and involved in this change from the beginning.

The PPG have helped us to develop our messages to patients.

We have tried to spread the message about these new services as far and wide as possible. Here are some of the ways we have informed patients of the change:

1. Our Patient Participation Group (PPG) have been involved in the development of our patient leaflets, posters and messages
2. Every registered patient with an email address on their record has been emailed in advance of the system going live
3. Our recorded telephone message which every caller listens to has also been changed to advertise the new services
4. We have been informing all patients who have attended the Practice
5. We have been sharing information via our social media channels daily

If you want to provide feedback on your experience of Patchs and your GP Practice, simply click on the Give Feedback link at the top of your Patchs homepage.

From here you can give a star rating out of 5 (5 being the highest) for:

• Your experience of your GP practice
• Your experience of using Patchs

Patchs will also ask you to provide feedback each time you contact your GP Practice. Your feedback is really important to your GP Practice and to our technology team.

It enables us to identify any problems and improve the quality of our service. Positive feedback is always also welcome too - let us know what we're doing well!

Please note: the feedback page is not regularly monitored by the GP Practice. It is also accessible to our technology team. Please do not submit any personal or medical information.

Once you have given your star rating, you will be asked to answer the Friends and Family question, and to explain your star ratings.