When the Fairwater and Greenmeadow Surgeries in Cwmbran merged in April 2019 to form the Cae Teg Health Centre a new appointments system was introduced. 

This relies on patients having to call a "triage team" at 10:30 to request an urgent appointment. Lines are often very busy and it is very often difficult to get through. There have been reports of patients ringing over 100 times to get through. This is totally unacceptable.

If patients are unable to get an urgent appointment, there is a minimum waiting time of 2 weeks to see a doctor. 

At the time of the merger, Cae Teg were quoted as saying "We are reassured that the changes being made are done so with a view to improve patient experience and improve services.". Far from "improving the patient experience", they have added stress, worry and delay to it and are offering a worse service.

It is clear that the new system is NOT WORKING and we call on the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board to conduct an urgent review of the current situation, to find an alternative solution.