About our Practice

Our History
Dr Nick Gailer opened the practice in 1994. At that time there was no pharmacy in Greenhithe, and ambulances could take up to 20 minutes to arrive. Over the years we have responded to many types of emergencies, and we carry emergency equipment such as oxygen and a defibrillator. We have specialised in many different areas of medicine including acupuncture, minor surgery and clinical drug trials. Dr Gailer has been the Principal Investigator for over a dozen clinical trials and was the New Zealand pioneer of Ultrasound Guided Sclerotherapy, today one of the most popular treatments for varicose veins. ProCare acquired Greenhithe Medical Centre in late 2023, as Dr Nick decided to step back and spend more time with his family. 

 

Enrolment with our Practice
You will be asked whether you want to enrol at our practice.  Enrolment is a process where you sign up with that practice as your preferred provider of your primary healthcare.  This long-term relationship aims to improve your healthcare.  You also qualify for lower fees following your sign up.  See our enrolment page for more information about how to enrol.

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Your Contact Details
Please keep us up to date with your contact details so we can do our best to contact you when needed for your healthcare.

 

Appointments
Standard appointments: are scheduled for 10-15 minute intervals.  Our fees are deliberately kept low and are based on consultations where the consultation and any related tasks (referrals, reports, result follow-up etc.) is completed in 15 minutes. This allows us to keep to time.

Longer appointments: If you think you need more than a 10 minute appointment, please  book a longer appointment or plan to return for a second appointment. Longer or additional appointments will incur an extra fee.

Medicals: Insurance and driving medicals require longer appointments. Please speak to our receptionists for more information about this.

Urgent: For life-threatening emergencies, dial 111. If you are acutely unwell please ring the surgery and ask to speak to the nurse, who can assist with making arrangements.

Waiting Times and Delays: We make every effort to run to time but on occasions unexpected emergencies or a consultation running over time will cause delays.

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Prescriptions
Repeat prescription requests can be made via our Patient Portal or by telephoning our receptionists. You will usually need to see the doctor for a repeat prescription if you have not been seen within the last six months. We will not give prescriptions for new medicines without seeing you, except in extreme circumstances. The doctor has a medico-legal responsibility to ensure that prescribing is appropriate and that any necessary investigations/tests are current to help in the monitoring of the safety of your medications. Prescriptions will only be processed if you have no current outstanding charges with the practice.  We require 24 hours’ notice for a prescription. If you require an urgent prescription (on the same day), there may be an additional charge.

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Emails

Email is a convenient method of communication, but it is not private.  We do not give medical advice, send medical information, or accept repeat prescription requests via email.  Please telephone the surgery or use our Patient Portal to contact us. Because we prioritise seeing patients, attention to emails may be delayed.  We may charge you for responding to emails depending upon the time involved.
We will only make appointments by email for those with severe hearing loss.  Please use our Patient Portal or telephone our receptionists for an appointment.
 

Test Results
Test results are available on our Patient Portal once they have been reviewed by the doctor.  We will do our best to contact you with any results that we consider will affect your healthcare and to arrange follow-up and action if needed.  You are welcome to phone and ask the nurse for your results if you do not have access to our Patient Portal.

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Complaints and Feedback
Please contact us early if you have any complaints so we can work together to put it right. Alternatively you can approach the Health and Disability Commission or the Medical Council of New Zealand if you feel this is warranted.  This is in accordance with the Health and Disability Act. We welcome suggestions in the suggestion box in reception area so we can improve our service.

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Health Promotion
Our practice maximises the use of programmes that are funded and or released by the Ministry of Health, ACC or other health promotion activities or agencies. These programmes are based on the 13 health gain priorities of the Ministry of Health.

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