On-going Telephone Problems Posted or Updated on 12 Jul 2023

Dear Patients,

I recently wrote to you, providing an update on the on-going problems we were having with our telephone supplier. Unfortunately, these problems have continued over recent weeks and as a surgery we can only apologise for any inconvenience this matter has caused. These problems are not limited to Library House Surgery and have impacted surgeries right across Lancashire and further afield.

I spoke previously about our desire to bring in a new telephony system, a new, modern system with additional functionality which will be of benefit to both staff and patients. At the time we had issues related to leaving our current supplier, but I’m pleased to say we have managed to resolve these issues and this week we have been able to place our order for a new system provided by a company called Xon. They are the market leader in providing GP telephone solutions and their system promises to improve how the surgery handles calls, their software will allow us;

• Unlimited call queuing capacity, therefore, patients should never receive an engaged tone.
• Automated appointment management, no need for cumbersome answerphone messages to be used, when patients are able to book, cancel and amend appointments using an automated system rather than queue to speak to a receptionist. If patients prefer, they can still choose to wait for a receptionist.
• Virtual call queuing, when the phone lines are busy, patients will be given the option of joining a virtual queue. Patients can then hang up and the system will automatically call them back when they are at the front of the queue.
• Behind the scenes it will allow the surgery to better manage call demand, with real time data about the number of calls, the length of time people are queuing for and the ability to display this information in real time.

It will take some time for our order to be processed and it’s likely to be March before the new system is installed, but this week has been an important milestone in the project. I would like to take this opportunity to thank patients for their on-going support and patience as we work to resolve this long-standing problem. I hope to be able to update you again in the near future.

Yours faithfully

Craig Lee
Business Manager


For and on behalf of Library House Surgery