Somerset's GP surgeries take too long to answer the phone and need to provide more appointments for patients.

That is the verdict of a new report by Healthwatch Somerset into the quality of GP surgeries across the county.

The organisation, which campaigns for better health services on behalf of ordinary patients, surveyed hundreds of patients and recorded their concerns about the quality of service being provided by their local surgeries.

It is recommending that health bosses hire more reception staff and use different forms of triaging to make GPs more available.

The Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has said it would be difficult to implement any of these changes during the current pandemic.

The report was published ahead of a virtual meeting of the Somerset health and well-being board on Thursday morning (January 21).

More than 350 patients were surveyed by Healthwatch Somerset over a one-month period, either through online questionnaire or face-to-face interviews at a handful of surgeries across all 13 primary care networks in the county.

Of those surveyed, more than two-thirds (70 per cent) booked an appointment with their GP over the phone, rather than online or face-to-face with a receptionist.

The report found that while the process of booking appointments worked generally well across Somerset, more could be done to make appointments available to people who needed them most.

A spokesman said: "When asked: 'What could be done to improve your experience of booking an appointment?' the most popular response was an increase in appointment availability.

"A significant number of people we spoke to were not satisfied with the length of time it took to answer the phone when they called the surgery."

One respondent, who did not wish to be identified, elaborated that only being able to book an appointment on the day made it harder, rather than easier, to see a GP.

They said: "Only being able to call and make an appointment on the day is very difficult, because if you don't call at 8.30am then you stand little chance of an appointment.

"I leave for work at 8.30 and I drive, so it is impossible to do this."

Another respondent concurred: "Getting through at 8.30am to be told all appointments have already been booked is not acceptable.

"Telephone consultations are not that helpful as the information is unclear."

Despite the need for appointments at short notice, the survey also found people were willing to wait longer for an appointment if it meant they could see the same GP every time.

A Healthwatch spokesman said: "Some people like to see the same GP at each visit because of the personal relationship they have created. This is particularly so for those with mental health issues

"Some respondents were prepared to wait longer for an appointment in order to see their preferred GP.

"Some people told us they were not comfortable being triaged by reception staff."

The five GP surgeries which scored highest in the survey (in terms of positive feedback received) are:

-The Blackbrook Medical Centre (aka Taunton Vale Healthcare), Taunton

-Burnham and Berrow Medical Centre, Burnham-on-Sea

-Highbridge Medical Centre, Highbridge

-Wellington Medical Centre, Wellington

-Ryalls Park Medical Centre, Yeovil

To address the issues raised in the report, Healthwatch has recommended changes to the triaging system to ensure patients can see a GP more quickly.

A spokesman said: "Emergency/ same day appointments are not available to book online because triage is required. This results in peak time phone jams with supply unable to meet demand.

"It would be beneficial for both surgeries and patients if this procedure could be reviewed to reduce call waiting times and emergency appointment allocation."

Among the suggestions proposed to improve the situation are:

-Increasing the number of reception/ triage staff during peak times to reduce call waiting times

-Implementing an online triage system, such as Doctorlink, to assist with the allocation of emergency appointments

-Introducing or increasing same day 'drop-in' clinics for emergency appointments

-Trialling online/ phone appointments

Dr Ed Ford, chairman of the Somerset CCG (which allocates health resources in Somerset), said it would be difficult to implement any of these changes until the coronavirus pandemic had been conquered.

He said: "Until such a time comes where the threat from this life-threatening illness can be significantly reduced, people are not going to be able to access healthcare in their usual ways.

"Therefore, we need to try and work out a way in which we can make these results relevant to our new environment.

"Patients and clinicians have been reluctant to change how they access or deliver primary care for many years, but this crisis has forced a transformation of delivery of services.

"This report highlights what patients feel comfortable with which, unfortunately, is not safe in the current climate.

"We need to use this as a way of highlighting what a lot of work needs to be done to support patients in changing how they access primary care that doesn't leave our most vulnerable patients with reduced access."