on: Spotlight Travel Health Kings Road Surgery N E W S L E T T E R

Kings Road Surgery
NEWSLETTER
Spring / Summer 2015
Volume 3 : Issue 1 Produced
by the Patient Participation Group
Pharmacy Information Event – Tuesday 12 May 2015
You are invited to our next Information Event:
Pharmacy, Medicines and
Managing Prescriptions
phone: 01767 682277
address: 27b Kings Road, Sandy, SG19 1EJ
email: k.road@nhs.net
web: www.kingsroadsurgery.org.uk
Spotlight on:
Travel Health
Tuesday 12 May at Sandy Village Hall
Doors open at 6.30pm
Presentation starts at 7pm
Estimated 2 hours duration with refreshments available
Find out more about:
•
When you should see a Pharmacist and how they
can help
•
What training Pharmacists have
•
Medicines policy in Bedfordshire and how to avoid
wastage
•
Repeat
prescriptions
and the practice
dispensary
•
Electronic
prescribing
Please register your interest.
Phone: 01767 682277
email: k.road@nhs.net
or let Reception know next time you’re in the surgery
Spring
&
2015
Summer
Before Travelling overseas, it is important to be aware
of the possible health risks and how to prevent
problems or minimise the chances of them occurring.
Our travel services offer advice on travel illnesses and
a full range of vaccinations. In order for you to
prepare for travel, pick up a travel risk assessment
form from Reception and complete with as much
detail as you can. Return this to the Reception desk
and book a 20-minute appointment with the nurse
approximately one week later for travel advice.
If you are travelling abroad you will need to start
thinking about your travel vaccinations at least 8-10
weeks before you’re due to leave as some
vaccinations can take time to become effective.
However, don’t worry if you are travelling at short
notice; we can still give you helpful advice close to the
time of your departure.
Useful travel links on the web:
Travel Illnesses and Vaccinations – NHS Choices
http://www.nhs.co.uk/Livewell/travelhealth/Pages/Tr
avellersillnesses.aspx
Fit for Travel
http://www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk/home.aspx
National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC)
http://www.nathnac.org/travel/
Changes in the practice
As you may already know, we’ve had some important changes in the practice in the last few months. Dr Peter
Gledhill decided to resign at the end of 2014 and has moved to work at one of the practices in Biggleswade. Over the
years, he’s done a great deal for the practice and local people, so we really wish him well in his new job.
Although we will be advertising to replace him, we know that appointing new partners takes care and want to make
sure we get that right.
We have a number of new faces in the clinical team, as you can see from the new photo board in the waiting room.
We particularly welcome Kelly Swannell, practice nurse, and Dr Simran Parhar, who is working with us until at least
the summer.
This change has forced us to reassess what sort of practice we want to be.
As a small practice, we know that patients want us to remain
approachable, and sort out problems when they arise. But there is more
to good general practice than that – it’s also important that we help
people stay healthy and for those who have long term conditions that we
help people manage these as effectively as possible. We want to stay
friendly, but become more efficient in how we work. Also we want to
make sure we use the resources available to us as effectively as possible.
We aren’t yet there in terms of efficiency, but you may have noticed
some changes. We are offering more telephone appointments, which can
work well if we don’t need to examine the patient. Also we are trying to
coordinate our various reviews, so we coordinate check-ups (eg asthma, blood pressure, diabetes) with the reviews
that people need for their medication. You can now book appointments and order repeat prescriptions online.
We know that recently people have had to wait longer for a routine appointment. This is partly because we’ve had
to prioritise urgent care during the winter flu epidemic. But it’s also a result of the problems we have with our
premises. We are using all the rooms all the time, so we’re really pleased that NHS England has accepted our
argument that general practice in Sandy needs investment. Sadly, these changes will not be immediate; it will take
about 18 months before new facilities are available. In the meantime, we are making changes to the rota and hope
that this will mean that booking appointments gets easier. We welcome feedback and suggestions and really
appreciate the support we’ve had from patients, individually and through the PPG.
Dr Jonathan Graffy, Lead GP
Premises update
The two practices in Sandy have been under pressure ever since the St Neots Road practice was closed four years
ago. Arrangements for GP premises are the responsibility of NHS England,
so we have been discussing our needs with them over the last two years.
In February we submitted a new proposal and are really excited to have
agreement in principle for the funding in this respect.
This would involve building a new surgery on the site of 27a Kings Road,
and providing extra parking where the current surgery is. This scheme
would also include facilities for the district nurses and some services
currently provided at Bedford Hospital. We have worked closely with the
Sandy Health Centre, the Greensands practice in Potton and also Horizon who provide NHS musculoskeletal clinics
and other services across Bedfordshire. There is more to do in securing all the necessary permissions, but we are
optimistic that things will move forward quickly.
Your questions answered
We thought it might be helpful to provide a selection of some of the more regularly-asked
questions by our patients, which we have set out below for you to keep as a handy guide.
How long is an appointment?
Our normal appointments are 10 minutes, however the GP may occasionally ask you
to book a double appointment if you have a complex matter. For some procedures
with our nurse (e.g. Spirometry (lung conditions) and 24 hour blood pressure
monitoring) the reception staff will normally ask what the appointment is for, to
ensure the appointment time is sufficient.
May I mention more than one problem
during an appointment?
The GP will endeavour to deal with your problems within 10 minutes but may ask
you to rebook if extra time is needed.
What is an emergency appointment?
An emergency appointment is for those problems that need to be seen on the same
day. If the problem can wait for a few days you should make a pre-bookable
appointment. You should not book an emergency appointment if you have run out
of medication; the dispensary can often deal with these queries. When all our
emergency appointments have been exhausted you will be offered a telephone
triage consultation with the GP to assess your symptoms.
What is the best time to ring for an
emergency appointment?
Our reception staff answer the telephone from 8 am, but due to high demand it may
take a while for you to get through.
Where can I find a list of all medical staff
in the practice?
We have a list of doctors & nurses on our website, NHS choices website and our
surgery leaflet. We are arranging to display a board in the Reception area with
photographs of all the staff and a note of their roles.
When should I telephone to speak to the
doctor?
All our GPs have telephone slots, which can be booked in advance. Any emergency
problems will be dealt with in the same-day triage telephone slots.
Is there a practice nurse available every
day?
Yes, we currently have 2 nurses covering Monday to Friday. We endeavour to find
locum nurses to cover holidays and sickness.
Do patients have to be referred to the
nurse?
The doctor may ask you to book an appointment with the nurse for a procedure (e.g.
ear syringe). You may also receive a letter asking you to make an appointment with
the nurse or healthcare assistant to monitor a health condition. Our nurses do not
currently deal with minor illnesses (e.g. coughs, sore throats), although Nurse Sue
Tapping can assess minor cuts.
How do I receive test results?
For blood, urine or stool test results you should ring the surgery in the afternoon,
leaving at least 2 working days (some tests may take longer). The receptionist will
tell you whether the result has been received and when the GP has looked at the
result, any comments they may have made. You can have a copy of the result if you
wish, but please understand that the receptionists cannot interpret results. If you
wish to discuss the result further, please book a routine (non-emergency) telephone
slot with your GP, or a pre-bookable appointment. Please do not ask for an
emergency slot, as we will always contact you if we need to see you urgently.
Hospital investigations (e.g. X rays, scans) can take up to 2 weeks so we request that
you be patient. However if your result has not been received within that time, you
can contact the surgery secretaries who will be able to chase your result.
Notes from the Surgery
Patient Participation Group
…from behind the desk
Hi – my name is Kelly Swannell. I recently joined
the practice as Practice Nurse, bringing experience
and knowledge gained through working in A+E for 8
years and GP surgeries for 6 years. I have a special
interest in cardiac and
respiratory conditions amongst
my other duties.
The Patient Participation Group (PPG) has been
running for about two years now and is affiliated to
the National Association of Patient Participation
Groups (NAPP)
We are all patients of the Practice who volunteer to
meet with some of the Doctors and the Practice
Manager for about an hour on a Thursday evening
every month or so.
At our meetings we discuss how we can all work
together to continually improve the services
provided at the surgery. (The meetings are not
used to discuss medical matters!)
Away from work, I enjoy all
aspects of sport, watching or
participating, having completed
some long distance cycle rides, marathons and
triathlons. I also raise money for 2 charities,
which are close to my heart.
We realise that many fellow patients at the surgery
don’t know about our Group, so if you’d like to
learn more about us and what we do, please
contact the Practice Manager for further
information.
Don’t be surprised if you see me cycling to work
once the weather improves!
You’ll be more than welcome to join us at one of
our future meetings.
A reminder…
We’re on the web (as well as the phone!)
Our website
Our email address
Our phone number
www.kingsroadsurgery.org.uk
k.road@nhs.net
01767 682277
Your email address
Your phone number(s)
From here, you can:
•
•
•
•
Make appointments
Order repeat prescriptions
Learn about surgery services
Link to ‘NHS Choices’
Interactive Health Tools
Have we got your email address?
If you’ve got a mobile number
If you’d be happy to hear from us on
as well as landline, please let
surgery administrative matters by email,
us have a note of it.
please let us have your email address.
(Don’t worry, we won’t use it for sending
confidential medical information unless you ask
us to.)
We can then send you text
reminders of appointments
etc.
Monday to Friday: 8am – 6.30pm
(Early appointments before 8am are available by
arrangement)