A LISNASKEA woman rang her local surgery 218 times before being told all appointments had been filled for the day. 

Katelyn Mannion said that she was in urgent need of a GP appointment, but was cut off hundreds of times before being connected to the que of callers. 

She said that she often needs to ring hundreds of times in order to secure an appointment, which she described as "a lottery". 

"It's crazy, truly crazy," said Ms. Mannion. "One of the days I rang 218 times, and when I did get through on the last call, the appointments were all gone. 

"This was well before the 10.30am deadline. This is a common occurrence in that all the appointments will be  gone before the deadline, and its not for lack of trying."

Ms. Mannion said that she feels sorry for elderly people who may be unable to keep ringing the surgery to secure an appointment. 

"I feel so sorry for the older people, or the people that wouldn't be able to keep calling back," she continued. "I know my granny wouldn't go through that to see a GP. 

"If you keep  hitting re-dail, you will eventually get through, but if you don't, there isn't a hope."

She added: "It's the same situation every time; you hear the dial tone, and then all you hear is the cut-off noise, and you have to try again. Eventually you will get through, and then you will be placed on a que. 

"However, nine times out of ten all the appointments will be gone for the day. It's a lorry. It's rough out there."

Ms. Mannion said that in her experience, the situation at Lisnaskea Surgery has gotten progressively worse over the years. 

"This has been a problem for a while, and it's gradually getting worse. 

"It started off at the end of last year I was ringing about 50 times before I got through, then it went up to 70 or 80, now it's always over 150. 

"I can only see the situation getting worse. Trying to get an appointment is crazy."