“We’ve never worked harder”: Ballymoney Family Practice highlights pressure on GP services

Ballymoney Family Practice

Ballymoney Family Practice has released detailed figures highlighting the immense workload handled by its team each week, as local GP surgeries across Northern Ireland continue to face growing demand and public scrutiny.

Between Monday 29 September and Friday 3 October 2025, the practice managed an extraordinary number of patient interactions and administrative tasks, underscoring the strain on general practice services.

In just five days, staff at the surgery answered 2,088 telephone calls — averaging 56 calls every hour — while processing 7,344 prescription items through voicemail, online and paper requests.

The team also dealt with hundreds of patients arriving at the reception desk each day, 1,429 incoming laboratory results, and conducted 1,992 appointments during the same period.

In addition, 798 individual letters from hospitals and external agencies were received, scanned and actioned by GPs and administrative staff.

A spokesperson for Ballymoney Family Practice said the figures were shared to help patients better understandq the challenges faced by local GP teams and the reasons for delays in processing prescriptions or answering calls.

“At present GP practices are constantly under scrutiny from the General Public but the truth is we’ve never worked harder,” the statement read.

“Here are a few figures to help patients understand why the phone lines are busy and why it takes 48 hours to process a prescription.”

The practice also highlighted the “mammoth registration tasks” and other unseen administrative duties that take place behind the scenes, including the preparation of medical records and sorting of post — all vital to keeping the practice running smoothly.

“We are very lucky that the good people of Ballymoney support us on a daily basis,” the spokesperson added.

“We again ask for your continued support so that we can maintain a safe and efficient service to our patients as we start a busy week ahead. Remember a kind word to the staff means so much.”

The message comes amid growing national concern about the sustainability of GP services, as practices across the UK struggle to balance increasing patient demand with limited resources.