GP surgeries have been feeling the pressure since the pandemic put the NHS under strain, and people requiring services may be wondering how reliable local surgeries are.

Fortunately for people in Watford, the town does not hold the worst-rated GPs in the UK as the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rates all of them ‘good’.

But while a study by solicitors Simpson Millar did not point out any Watford-specific surgeries, it found there is a disconnect between official ratings and patient reviews.

We looked to see if these ‘good’ GPs in Watford shared a similar trend and ranked some of the surgeries based on the best and worst Google reviews.

Upton Road Surgery

The CQC is currently carrying out a quality review, but ranks the surgery as ‘good’. However the board does note it ‘requires improvement’ when dealing with families, children and young people as well as working age people.

Patients gave the service a 1.3 rating out of five, and one person stated last month they put forward their complaints to the CQC.

Suthergrey House Medical Centre

While the GP is considered ‘good’ overall, it still ‘requires improvement’ in its handling of people with long term conditions.

And with a 2.4 rating based on 67 reviews, it appears that some patients do not have the same positivity as in the CQC report.

One reviewer, Stefania Fossati, said she was “disappointed” in the GP as it’s still “not possible” to have a face-to-face appointment.

She continued: “The phone is always extremely busy and you have to wait minimum 20 minutes and the worst is when someone answer, you are literally unable to take an appointment because they want you to call at 8am.”

Garston Medical Centre

The medical centre has a 2.6 rating from patients, with one reviewer stating she was left waiting on the phone for 49 minutes only to then have the phone hung up on her.

The Consulting Rooms

This South Oxhey practice has a rating of 2.8 from patients, with many people this year commenting about the struggle to book face-to-face appointments.

Pathfinder Practice

This GP has mainly had positive reviews within the past year, with a rating of 3.0.

However there are also some negative reviews that say there was “terrible service”.

Baldwins Lane Surgery

This surgery has a 3.4 rating based on 14 reviews. The most recent review says that the nurse is “wonderful” and “empathetic”, but there have also been a set of negative reviews within the last year.

Bridgewater Surgeries

Bridgewater is considered a ‘good’ surgery by the CQC, but recent patient reviews have been critical as it currently sits at 3.6.

Mark Heron wrote how he had to “speak to a lawyer” due to a few complaints he had.

Another patient said there are “long queues when calling”.

However there are other recent reviews praising the “incredible experience”.

Attenborough Surgery

This surgery has a 3.7 rating with the two most recent reviews stating doctors are “very caring and compassionate” and thanking the reception.

There were other conflicting reviews that criticised the service.

South Oxhey Surgery

This surgery has been praised by patients, with a rating of 4.0  and generally people saying the surgery is welcoming and “wonderful”.

Manor View Practice

The practice at Bushey Medical Centre has a 4.5 rating and patients mainly had only good things ot say about their time there.