New arrangements have been introduced to make it easier for people with COVID-19 symptoms to access GP services.
Patients who call for advice for consultations will no longer be charged.
Patients will also not be required to be registered with a local GP practice to make a call.
The new measures come as some local health centres deal with a large volume of patient queries. People who are not registered with a GP will be able to contact any centre with concerns due to “these extraordinary challenging times”.
Anyone with symptoms should immediately self-isolate and NOT wait to contact a GP. Please stay at home, and stay separate from other household members.
The Irish Medical Organisation and the Irish College of General Practitioners: “General Practice is the first point of contact for patients with symptoms and in these extraordinary challenging times GPs will facilitate those people who are not normally registered with the practice.
“General practice has been dealing with a large volume of patient calls over the past week and we continue to ask people to be patient.
“In most cases, you will be asked for your details and will then receive a call back, please do not make multiple calls to the practice.
“There is no charge for COVID- 19 triage, but you will need to provide details to your GP including name, address, date of birth, symptoms, underlying health conditions and PPSN, so please have all relevant details to hand before making the call.
“Anyone with symptoms should immediately self-isolate and NOT wait to contact a GP. Please stay at home, and stay separate from other household members.
“GPs, like all frontline healthcare workers, are dedicated and committed to the national efforts in relation to COVID- 19. We are grateful for the public’s co-operation at this time, and we ask that you continue to be supportive and patient in the weeks ahead.”
