New Patients

Registration Process

As Bruntsfield is a large Practice, with a heavy registrations demand, we have to manage the number of registrations we can do a week, which will change depending on recent patient turnover rates and staffing levels.

Before contacting the practice please check that you are in our catchment area

The new registrations list is opened each Tuesday at 11am. 

To book your registration slot, please complete and submit the following form as accurately as possible:

PRE-REGISTRATION FORM

Please be aware that the number of slots available each week is capped and we accept submissions on a first-come, first-served basis. Once the cap has been reached the form will automatically close and no more submissions will be allowed until the following Tuesday at 11am.

If you are successful in obtaining a place, we aim to send the forms to you either by email or post within 48 hours. We ask that forms are completed and returned within 2 weeks.

Patients are normally registered within 3 working days upon receipt of completed forms.

Once the weekly allocation of registration slots have been filled you have a couple of options:

  • Search the  NHSInform website for other Practices in your area
  • Try again the following Tuesday at 11am.

If you have tried and exhausted all options available to you and have had no success in securing a space at a GP practice, you can email the health board at nss.psdedinburgh@nhs.scot detailing where you have tried and when. They may be able to allocate you a GP practice.

In the meantime, please note that the following categories of patients can be registered without restriction.

  • Family members of those already registered, providing they reside at the same address. (This includes elderly members of the family joining permanently)
  • New births of current patients
  • Patients who were previously registered and are returning within the Practice boundary
  • Patients resident at Chamberlain Nursing Home

Please be aware that medical records can take a considerable time to be transferred from England to Scotland.

If you are in a position to obtain a summary or provide us with relevant hospital letters please submit these in addition to completing our patient health questionnaire.

registration sign

Once You Have Been Informed You Can Register At The Practice

To register, you will need to fill in a registration form, which you will get as part of a registration pack from our Registrations Officer. The pack will be sent via website link, but a paper copy can be sent if needed. You will also need to complete the relevant health questionnaire which is also included in the pack.

Please be thorough and complete all sections in the registration forms, as unfortunately we are unable to process incomplete forms, and this may delay your registration. Your application will be processed usually within two working days, depending on when we receive it.

Given the demand for places on the Practice list, to be fair to all, we require patients to provide a form of identification and proof that their address is within the Practice’s designated boundary. Anyone wishing to register who is unable or unwilling to provide this information should contact the Registrations Offer on 0131 228 6081 for advice and assistance.

Preferred forms of Identification

  • Passport/Residence Permit
  • Photographic Driving Licence
  • UK Bus Pass with photo

Preferred forms of Proof of address

  • Council Tax bill – with name of prospective person registering and the current address
  • Utility bill – with name of prospective person registering and the current address

Please be aware that medical records can take a considerable time to transfer between England and Scotland. If you are in a position to obtain a summary from your previous Practice, or provide us with a medical history in addition to completing out patient health questionnaire, please do so.

Temporary Patient Registrations

If you are ill while away from home or if you are not registered with a doctor but need to see one you can receive emergency treatment from the local GP practice for 14 days. After 14 days you will need to register as a temporary or permanent patient.

You can be registered as a temporary patient for up to three months. This will allow you to be on the local practice list and still remain a patient of your permanent GP. After three months you will have to re-register as a temporary patient or permanently register with that practice.

To register as a temporary patient simply contact the local practice you wish to use. Practices do not have to accept you as a temporary patient although they do have an obligation to offer emergency treatment as "immediate necessary". You cannot register as a temporary patient at a practice in the town or area where you are already registered.

Non-English Speakers

These fact sheets have been written to explain the role of UK health services, the National Health Service (NHS), to newly-arrived individuals seeking asylum. They cover issues such as the role of GPs, their function as gatekeepers to the health services, how to register and how to access emergency services.

Special care has been taken to ensure that information is given in clear language, and the content and style has been tested with user groups.

Open the leaflets in one of the following languages: