PRACTICE NEWS
Annual GP survey results for Suffolk practices revealed
We are very pleased to share The National GP Patient Survey Results.
We would like to take the opportunity to thank our dedicated, caring and professional staff.
We welcome all feedback and we will continue to review all the services we provide to our patients.
Updated Policy on Prescribing Diazepam for Flights
At Wickham Market Medical Centre, we have made the decision to stop the prescription of diazepam for any cases related to fear of flying. The decision to do so has been based on the following information.
- Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed. If there is an emergency during the flight it may impair your ability to concentrate, follow instructions and react to the situation. This could have serious safety consequences for you and those around you.
- Sedative drugs can make you fall asleep, however when you do sleep it is an unnatural non-REM sleep. This means you won’t move around as much as during natural sleep. This can cause you to be at increased risk of developing a blood clot (DVT) in the leg or even the lung. Blood clots are very dangerous and can even prove fatal.
This risk is even greater if your flight is greater than 4 hours. - Whilst most people find benzodiazepines like diazepam sedating, a small number of people experience the opposite effect and may become aggressive. Benzodiazepines can also cause disinhibition and lead you to behave in a way that you would not normally. This could impact on your safety as well as that of other passengers and could also get you into trouble with the law.
- According to the national prescribing guidelines that doctors follow (the British National Formulary, or BNF) benzodiazepines are not allowed to be prescribed in cases of phobia. Thus, your doctor would be taking a significant legal risk by prescribing diazepam for fear of flying as it is going against these guidelines. Benzodiazepines are only licensed short term for a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health and not going on a flight.
- Diazepam and similar drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated, or you may find yourself in trouble with the police.
- Diazepam stays in your system for quite a while. If your job requires you to submit to random drug testing, you may fail this having taken diazepam.
We appreciate that fear of flying is very real and very frightening. A much better approach is to tackle this properly with a Fear of Flying course run by the airlines. We have listed a number of these below.
Easy Jet - Fearless Flyer
Tel 0203 8131644
British Airways information
Tel 01252 793250
Virgin Atlantic Information - Flying Without Fear
Tel 01423 714900 1252250
We thank you for your understanding,
Many thanks, Jasper.
Online Appointments
you are now able to book the following appointments using your systm one online account
- Asthma reviews
- COPD reviews
- B12 injections
- Cervical Screening
If you do not have access to systm one online please contact reception.
Evening and Weekend Appointments
Evening and weekend appointments are available at Wickham Market Medical Centre GP practice or at an NHS service nearby. Appointments can be made until 8pm on weekdays and between 9am and 5pm on Saturdays. You will be able to discuss your health concern with a GP, nurse or other health professional and also make routine appointments for vaccinations, health checks and screenings. Book with the reception team.
Visit the NHS Suffolk and North East Essex website to learn more about the different health care professionals working in GP surgeries.
National Data Opt Out
You can opt out of your GP record be shared with NHS Digital for planning and research before September 21. For more information please see this advice sheet or our Privacy Policy.
Research Study - Germ Defence
We are letting you know about a very useful website called Germ Defence which was created by a team of doctors and scientists to give you advice that has been proven to reduce the spread of viruses in the home. It can help you plan how to protect yourself and members of your family from infection by COVID-19 and ‘flu.
Please see this article for details
Monitor Your Blood Pressure at Home
We are requesting patients to supply us with home blood pressure readings wherever possible instead of coming into the surgery for a blood pressure check. It would be extremely helpful if you would purchase a blood pressure monitor if you are able to do so. These machines can be purchased for £20 to £50. We realise not everyone may be able to afford a monitor but if as many patients as possible are able to do so, it will allow us to maximise patient and staff safety in the building.
Examples of blood pressure monitors approved for home monitoring
The Kinetik Wellbeing monitor is available to purchase from Wickham Market & Rendlesham Surgeries for £20 whilst stocks last. Please contact the Pharmacy or Dispensary if you wish to purchase one.
Once you have your blood pressure monitor, we suggest you take 3 readings a few minutes apart and record the lowest reading, then repeat this at different times of the day. If you could let the surgery know the average of the results by email, eConsult or phone, we will record the result and contact you if any action is needed.
How we use Information to Manage the Health of Local Population
For further details see our How we use Information to Manage the Health of Local Population document.
My Care Record
My Care Record enables health and care professionals, directly involved in your care, to access information about you.
Contact your Doctor Online
We've added eConsult to our website. This enables you to contact your Doctor online. For further information on how eConsult works why not watch this short video.
Pharmacy2U
Pharmacy2U is NOT your local pharmacy and has nothing to do with us.
Further advice regarding Pharmacy2U
Telephone Support Line for Over 65’s
Thanks to the support of Suffolk Community Foundation, Aspire Together in BSE will be launching a new support service for older people in Suffolk on Monday 8th February 2021. Later Life Community Connect is a single point of access telephone support line with a “real” person at the end of the phone, between 10am and 2pm, seven days a week. Please see poster for more information.
On Line Research Study - Psychological impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Psychological impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and experience: An international survey
Following a highly successful first phase which saw over 41,000 participants, researchers from Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust are leading a collaboration group are launching the second phase of their global study into the psychological impact of the Coronavirus pandemic and lockdown. The study is linked to the Medical Research Council global health research programme led by the Portsmouth-Brawijaya Centre for Global Health, Population, and Policy, University of Portsmouth.
Phase one results gave valuable insights in to how different people, genders and communities were coping with the global pandemic and the second phase enables more people to take part and ensures an even greater range and comparison between the two phases.
You can take part by completing the short questionnaire exploring the psychological impact of the coronavirus, its effect on our emotions, behaviour and wellbeing. The aim of the survey is to better understand how the coronavirus and the impact the current lockdown is having on our day to day lifestyle, what is helpful and what may be causing some people to be affected more than others in terms of their wellbeing.
The survey is open to anyone over the age of 16 and able to complete the online questionnaire. If you completed the survey in the first phase, you can take it again this time as it is important to understand how people have adapted and changed. We would encourage everyone, including staff, patients, friends and family to take part.
The survey can be found at this website, which takes around 10 minutes to complete.
Please ensure you select Wickham Market Medical Centre when asked where you heard about the survey. You can find out more on the research pages on this website.
The survey is linked to the Medical Research Council global health research programme led by the Portsmouth-Brawijaya Centre for Global Health, Population, and Policy, University of Portsmouth. It has full Health Research Authority approval and is open to anyone over the age of 16 and able to complete the online questionnaire.
CLIMB Study
The study is open to anyone over 16 years of age (or under 16 with parental permission). Participants must reside in the UK. The average time taken to complete the online survey is approx. 15 minutes.
GP sites have been added to the survey so that when participants are asked where they heard about the survey, they should be asked to tick 'from a GP' and then further instructed to tick the name of the surgery in a drop-down list. Participants are advised to start typing the name of their surgery and drop-down boxes containing those words appear, so they don't have to scroll through a long list.
The survey is open to anyone; patients, relatives, friends, local groups, village social media sites etc. You can send the link to anyone.
Latest Newsletter
Older Newsletters
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- Summer 2019 Newsletter
Keep Calm And... the user guide to handling your new baby
- When a baby is crying, there are different ways you can try to soothe it/’fix’ the problem
- If baby won’t soothe, and if you feel stressed and overwhelmed, step away for a moment, take a moment to yourself and try to calm down
- It is not unusual or shameful to feel overwhelmed by a baby crying
See this slideshow for more information
- Babies are delicate and vulnerable, and it is dangerous to shake them
- Help is available, and you are not alone
Social Prescribing: Connect for Health - What is Social Prescribing?
Social prescribing enables GPs, nurses and other primary care professionals to refer people to a range of local, non-clinical services.
Locally, social prescribing is known as 'Connect for Health'.
NHS England describes social prescribing as “enabling all local agencies to refer people to a link worker”. Link workers - known locally as Community Connectors - give people time and focus on what matters to the person as identified through shared decision making or personalised care and support planning. They connect people to community groups and agencies for practical and emotional support.
Connect for Health particularly works for a wide range of people, including those:
- with one or more long-term conditions,
- who need support with their mental health,
- who are lonely or isolated,
- who have complex social needs which affect their wellbeing.
Take a look at our Special Edition Newsletter about Connect for Health and our A new way of working with you information sheet for more information.
New Support for Parents (Information for young children)
Good neighbourhood schemes / Support
Lost and Found
We have a few items in our lost and found drawer. If you have lost something or think you have left something behind at the surgery please contact us with the details.
Investors in People
We are pleased to announce that we have retained our Investors in People Accreditation. The Surgery has worked very hard to keep the standard for the award and would like to thanks all the staff for their hard work on the achievement.
For more information on Investors In People please follow the link: Investors in People Webpage
Healthwatch Suffolk
See our Healthwatch Suffolk page.
The Suffolk and North East Essex Digital Health and Care Survey
We are seeking to gather feedback from the public and also our local NHS and care workforce about the use of digital services (e.g. online consultations with clinicians, remote triage or visiting etc). The aim is to understand how the significant increase in the use of technology during the pandemic has impacted upon people’s experiences of receiving, or providing, both NHS or social care.
- Hosting page with information about the work and links to various survey formats
- News item, including statements from Andy Yacoub, Sam Glover and Dr. Ed Garratt
We are particularly keen to hear from people who may find it difficult to access online services, or who may be digitally excluded so that we can find out what is needed to help people access care or support. We would also appreciate any support to reach BAME communities and people for whom English is not their first language.
There is an opportunity for people to sign-up to participate in co-production of a second phase of this research that will explore people’s experiences in more depth. This second phase will be informed by people’s responses to this initial survey.
The pandemic has accelerated the use of digital service offers, which has been viewed as a positive development for people needing to access care or advice at this time. In many cases, these new ways of working will be here to stay, so we need to make sure they will work for those who need to access them now and in the future. The survey, which has been commissioned by the SNEE ICS, is an opportunity for our local health and care system to reflect upon this and to take forward any learning into future digital strategies and practice across services.
We would be very grateful for any support from system leaders to distribute this survey widely across the ICS footprint and to encourage responses from both the public and also NHS or social care staff. Please contact research@healthwatchsuffolk.co.uk if you have any questions about this work or call 01449 703949 to speak with a member of the team.
GP training afternoons
We are still open to collect pre-made prescriptions and make appointments in person but there are no clinicians on site. Telephones are diverted to 111 from 13.00 on these days to allow staff training.
The next GP training afternoons, for 2021, are on:
- 26th August 2024
- 11th September 2024
- 23rd October 2024
- 13th November 2024
We apologise for any inconvenience caused. For urgent assistance please contact NHS out of hours service on 111.
Please note: These dates are subject to change.
We are also closed all day on all Bank Holidays.
GP online, saving you time
Did you know that GP online services can save you time?
Did you know that you can book and cancel appointments online, order repeat prescriptions and, view some of your health records by simply signing up for GP online services? All you have to do is take two forms of ID into your GP practice and register your details.
You can find out more about GP online services on the NHS.uk website.
Friends and Family
The Friends and Family Test is a way of gathering your feedback, so we can continually review our service.
It is one simple question:
"How likely are you to recommend our GP practice to friends and family if they needed similar care or treatment?"
Your feedback will help us learn more about what you think of your experience - what you like and what you think we could improve. Ultimately, you're helping us to make changes that will ensure we can offer the best possible care.
It is completely anonymous. Please collect a form from your Doctor or Reception.
