Feeling unwell generates its own level of stress, and it doesn’t help if you have just Googled your symptoms! Naturally, you need to see your GP to get a diagnosis, and it is at this point we add another layer of stress to an already fraught scenario… booking a GP appointment and dealing with the 8am rush.

We have all been there, we all know that feeling. We ring our doctor’s surgery at 8am and find we are in a queue, spending the next 10 minutes listening to Greensleeves. What you may not realise is the 8am rush isn’t just people looking for a GP appointment.

Today’s GP Practice provides a wide range of healthcare services; under the same roof there are physiotherapists, dietitians, mental health practitioners, occupational therapists...you may simply need to organise a repeat prescription.

An average sized GP practice will receive in the region of 10,000 telephone calls per month, that’s a lot of people dialling in at 8am every morning.

IT developer Max Gattlin - who boasts a background in tech start-ups - and his team at Hanley Health, which has recently become a part of the X-on Health family, are looking to make the 8am rush a thing of the past.

Thanks to Mr Gattlin's pioneering system, which was initially called EDATT, but has been rebranded under the name Surgery Assist, the patient’s experience is being revolutionised.

“What might not be common knowledge is that not all calls making up that 8am rush are people wishing to make an appointment with their GP," said Max.

Pioneered by Max Gattlin at X-On Health Surgery Assist can help with the '8am rush'Pioneered by Max Gattlin at X-On Health, Surgery Assist can help with the '8am rush' (Image: Getty Images) “There will be calls in the queue from people wishing to arrange a repeat prescription or see another health professional such as the practice nurse rather than the GP."

The beauty of the Surgery Assist technology developed by Max, Hanley Health and X-on is that it filters each caller to the correct person or service they require. Max has described the results as “absolutely astounding”.

“We've been deploying this approach for the last two years and some of the data that we've received from it is absolutely astounding in terms of resource allocation or reallocation.

“We're retraining staff now. We've tackled and solved the AM rush in at least 80% of our surgeries, where they're answering the phone within a minute.”

While Surgery Assist is helping to reduce telephone queues by 30 to 40 per cent, there is still a great deal of demand for a GP appointment; rather than be left hanging on the phone, Surgery Assist has a Patient Call-back service, which holds the patient’s place in the queue after they have called in and hung up. They receive a call-back instead of waiting on the line, saving time and money. Also, if English isn’t your first language, Surgery Assist is multilingual.

“Surgery Assist is our flagship automated digital support assistant. The first of its kind,” said Mr Gattlin, “It has been meticulously designed for deployment across GP surgery practice websites and telephone systems throughout England."

Max Gittens, left, and the development team at X-On HealthMax Gattlin, left, and the development team at X-On Health (Image: X-On) Max added: “Our ethos is to share experience and specialist knowledge, understand requirements, help solve a client’s urgent problems and deliver impact across the health and care system. We know that each surgery will work slightly differently, but we can customise the service to suit each surgery’s needs.

“We pride ourselves in keeping up to date with new platforms and systems, ensuring interoperability and data security are at the forefront of delivering change across care systems, services, teams, individuals, staff and patients.”

Six reasons to consider Surgery Assist

  • Integration with patient record systems means when a patient speaks to any member of the practice team their information is to hand, eliminating frustrating delays.
  • High call volumes? Patient Call-back holds the patient’s place in the queue after they have called in and hung up. They receive a call-back instead of waiting on the line, saving time and money.
  • Integration with patient record systems means when a patient speaks to any member of the practice team their information is to hand, eliminating frustrating delays.
  • Patients have access to select dedicated resources, such as vaccination centres or repeat prescription services without having to queue with other patients who simply want an appointment.
  • Surgery Connect can be configured to inform patients with high quality voice messages at every stage of their journey, minimising stress.
  • When deployed at scale, phone services allow patients to self-serve without waiting to speak with a receptionist. Examples include checking or cancelling appointments, or requesting links to more information or online services.

To find out more, click here: www.x-on.co.uk