Friday 25 December 2009

Merry Xmas

A short post just to wish all our patients and visitors to the blog a Merry Christmas and every happiness and health for the New Year. Thank you for all your support in 2009!

Thursday 24 December 2009

NHS Constitution

The NHS are considering changes to the NHS constitution. These include making it a right to access services within a maximum waiting time, health checks every 5 years for those aged 40-74, and a 'constitution champion'.

When I talk to temporary patients (visitors to the area needing medical treatment), the feeling I get is that some have to wait days for an urgent appointment and possibly a week or two for a routine appointment to see a GP of their choice- thankfully this is not the situation at Reeth. We already offer a well person check every 3 years and often we are able to pick up problems such as diabetes or lung disease early on. I think that this should be an entitlement across the whole NHS.

To have your say, go to the on-line survey at: www.northyorkshireandyork.nhs.uk by 11 Jan 10

Wednesday 9 December 2009

Emergencies!

An update on dealing with emergency problems...

We have had several occasions where people have contacted the practice about people who are potentially seriously ill - e.g. chest pain, suspected stroke, traffic accidents. Please, please, please call 999 first before contacting the surgery.

Strokes and suspected heart attacks are time-critical problems and patients need to get to hospital for treatment as soon as possible. The ambulance can take some time to get to you, so the sooner it is called the better. Do call the surgery after calling 999 - the doctors will attend to you (often before the ambulance gets there) and give you emergency treatment, but ultimately the sooner patients get to hospital, the better (heart attcks getting to hospital within an hour do considerably better as do strokes within 4 hours).

It is far better for the doctor to call off the ambulance than be stuck waiting a long time for one to arrive!

Saturday 5 December 2009

On-line prescription ordering

Just a quick plug to all those who are on-line who are not using the ordering system. Repeat medication can be ordered via our secure website- you will need to collect a password and login in person from the surgery (for patient confidentiality reasons). Once you have this you can access the secure site at www.reeth.org.uk

In the New Year, you will be able to book appointments with the GP or Nurse Practitioner through the same system, saving you time on the 'phone!

Thursday 3 December 2009

E-mail correspondence

Over the next few months, we will be looking to develop our database of patient e-mail addresses. Our aim is to offer e-mail reminders to patients for their routine check-ups and 'flu vaccinations etc. In the future, we also plan to develop specific newsletters for different long-term conditions, such as diabetes or asthma, which would provide up to date information on new developments and treatments, with links to websites for further information. We will also be doing our bit for the practice carbon footprint.

The information flow is two-way, you will be pleased to know! A lot of queries or requests need not be dealt with in person, for example requesting antimalarials for holidays or advice on a particular pre-existing condition or even e-mailing information from medical records to people receiving treatment abroad on holiday! We can be contacted via: info@gp-b82622.nhs.uk

Please note that email is for routine matters, not emergencies, and that the e-mail is not encrypted and therefore we cannot guarantee its security.