Emma AI

We all know how it goes. It’s 8am. You’re trying to get through to the surgery. You’re hitting redial, waiting on hold, and meanwhile the school run is calling, or you’re already late for work. By the time you get through, you’re frazzled — and so is the person on the other end.

Our reception team works incredibly hard. But they’re managing the phones, the front desk, appointments and admin, all at the same time. And the honest truth is that there simply aren’t enough hours in the day for every call to be answered the moment it comes in.

That’s why we’re doing something about it.

From 06/10/2026, when you call Eversley Medical Centre, you’ll be greeted by EMMA — our new AI phone assistant. EMMA picks up straight away. No queue. No hold music. You just tell her why you’re calling, and she takes it from there.

EMMA will ask a few simple questions to make sure she has everything the surgery needs. Then your details go straight to the right person here — a clinician or a receptionist — who reviews your request and gets back to you. Because they already have all the information in front of them, things tend to move faster.

• Booking or changing appointments
• Prescription queries
• Sick notes and medical letters
• General queries about the practice
• Directing you to the right service or team

You can speak to EMMA by phone or use her on our website. And if English isn’t your first language, just start speaking in yours — EMMA will do her best to respond.

For some requests, EMMA may suggest another service — such as Pharmacy First or the NHS App — where you might get help more quickly. It’s always your choice whether to take that suggestion up. And before she recommends anything, EMMA will ask a few questions to make sure it’s genuinely suitable for you. None of this happens by accident — it’s all been agreed with the surgery.

EMMA doesn’t make clinical decisions. She doesn’t diagnose, and she doesn’t decide who gets an appointment. All that remains with our clinical team, following NHS guidelines, exactly as it always has.

If anything sounds urgent, or EMMA isn’t sure how to help, she’ll put you straight through to a person. You can also ask to speak to a member of our team at any point, and she’ll connect you.

You don’t need to be particularly tech-savvy to use EMMA. You just pick up the phone and speak, the same as you always have.

This isn’t about replacing our team or cutting corners. Our reception staff are still here, doing what they do best. EMMA is here so they can focus on the patients who need a bit more time and support, rather than spending the morning managing a call queue.

We’ve introduced EMMA because we want you to be able to get through to us when you need to. That’s it.

If you have any questions or want to share your experience of using EMMA, please speak to our reception team.