If you need to ring the practice to check blood or X-ray results, please ring between 10:00 and 17:00 when the surgery is less busy and the results have been entered on the computer.

Note that the practice has a strict policy regarding confidentiality and data protection and we will only release test results to the person to whom they relate unless that person has given prior permission for the release of this data or they are not capable of understanding the results.

When you take your test you will be told how long it will be before the results are returned to the practice.

Hospital Results

We are aware that in some areas certain hospital doctors have been instructing patients to contact their GP practice to find out hospital results.

Both the General Practitioner Committee and the Consultants Committee of the BMA agree this practice is potentially unsafe and that the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that results are acted upon rests with the person requesting the test.

Please contact the clinician or their secretaries at the hospital that arranged this test.

ARI Switchboard 0345 456 6000

It is your responsibility to check your results and to make an appointment to discuss them with your doctor if you are advised to do so.

A blood test is when a sample of blood is taken for testing in a laboratory. Blood tests have a wide range of uses and are one of the most common types of medical test. For example, a blood test can be used to:

• assess your general state of health
• confirm the presence of a bacterial or viral infection
• see how well certain organs, such as the liver and kidneys, are functioning

A blood test usually involves the phlebotomist taking a blood sample from a blood vessel in your arm and the usual place for a sample is the inside of the elbow or wrist, where the veins are relatively close to the surface. Blood samples from children are most commonly taken from the back of the hand. The childs hand will be anaesthetised (numbed) with a special cream before the sample is taken.

You can find out more about blood tests, their purpose and the way they are performed on the NHS Choices website.

An X-ray is a widely used diagnostic test to examine the inside of the body. X-rays are a very effective way of detecting problems with bones, such as fractures. They can also often identify problems with soft tissue, such as pneumonia. 

X-rays and other imaging such as Ultrasound scans are not done at Maryhill. Imaging results will go back to the clinican whom requested them. If this has been requested by a Hospital doctor please contact the clinician or their secretary at the hospital that arranged the test. Imaging can take up to a number of weeks to get the results back.

You can find out more about imaging including X-rays, how they are performed, their function and the risks by visiting the NHS Choices website.