Ormskirk Medical Practice Newsletter
Welcome to the Summer edition of our newsletter. As some of you may
be aware at the end of July Dr Marshall will be retiring. She has been
with the Practice since 1981, joining as a trainee GP before becoming a
partner. There is a signing book available at reception for those of you
who would like to join us in wishing her well in her retirement.
Dr Dean has had a baby girl and is currently on maternity leave, extra
sessions to help cover her leave are being provided by Dr Maria
Markides and Dr Frampton. Dr Dean is due to return to the Practice in
February 2017.
Dr Alasdair Patrick is due to continue in the Practice and is available four
days a week. He along with Dr Frampton are also able to offer joint
injections.
We have a new nurse joining the Practice Team, Rachael Paglia joins
our team on 6th June and will be working on Monday, Thursdays and
Fridays
Dr Hugh Bishop-Cornet and Dr Amy Bishop-Cornet along with Dr
Frampton are the partners in the Practice.
Patient Participation Group
Our Patient Participation Group
has recently had its first proper
meeting, transferring from a
“virtual” on-line group to
attending a meeting in the
Practice. It was a small group
of 4 patients and we would be
very happy to hear from
anyone else who would like to
join us for our next meeting
which is planned for Monday
12th September at 6pm. The
meeting aims to keep to its scheduled hour and is chaired by Dr
Frampton. If you are interested in joining us please let the reception
team know and we will send you an invitation reminder via email or
letter. Alternatively if there are any issues you would like to be brought to
the attention of the Patient group please feel free to leave the details at
reception.
On-line access.
For those of you who would like the option of booking
your appointment or re-ordering a repeat prescription on
line, please ask at reception. We will issue you with a
unique pin number which needs to be activated within 2
weeks of being issued. We have a limited number of
appointments available via this means at the moment but as the
bookings increase so will the availability. If you would like to have
access to your medical records please ask at reception , this is available
following a review by your GP .
Appointment Bookings
From our recent survey we realised that a lot of you
were unaware that we book GP appointments up to 3
weeks in advance. Routine appointments are usually a
10 minute consultation but if you have a number of
problems you wish to discuss with your doctor, ask the
receptionist if you can book a double appointment.
We have recently introduced a Doctor On Call scheme, this is aimed at
those patients who require an appointment on the same day as they are
suffering from an acute illness. We would respectively request that you
limit an appointment booked for an acute illness to one problem and
make a follow-up appointment with the GP if you wish to discuss a more
routine matter.
Have you been waiting long?
The GP’s and nursing staff do try to keep to time, but
unfortunately if an emergency occurs or a patient needs
more than the allocated time, they can sometimes run late.
Please be patient. A GP can be interrupted by numerous
health colleagues during their working day, nursing home staff
queries, palliative care nurse queries, pharmacy, secondary
care colleagues, social services, mental health team and when they are
on call by the reception team needing urgent advise. Please be aware
that the GP may appear to “have nobody in with him” but may be
involved in any number of telephone conversations relating to patients
who may be too ill to attend the surgery. This if often the reason they
may be running late. Please be patient.
Patients who need to be seen downstairs
You may have noticed our new consulting room
downstairs. This has been squeezed into the
building by reducing the office space. This is to help
those patients who have difficulty getting upstairs as
we now have two rooms that can be used by GP’s
and nursing staff to see patients. If you do need to
be seen downstairs please inform the receptionist
either at the time of booking your appointment or as
you arrive. We can then ensure that the GP knows
to come downstairs to see you.
Carers
Are you a carer? Please let us know if you are a
carer, we can refer you for a carer assessment, you
may be eligible for a cash sum following this
assessment, support services can also be
signposted which may enable you to access respite care etc.
Are your contact details up to date?
Have you changed your mobile number? Landline number
of even moved house? Please let the receptionist know if
any of these apply to you. It is important that we have up to
date details for all patients.
Medical Students
Dr Patrick is providing training for Liverpool University Medical Students.
When the students are in the Practice you have the option to see the GP
on your own or you can opt to see the medical student, this provides the
Doctors of the future with vital experience. We will always advertise
when there is a student and will let you know which GP they are
observing with. Thank you in advance for your patience and cooperation.
Communication Difficulties
Do you have difficulty communicating? Do you know we can provide
interpreters to assist you in your GP consultation?
Do you struggle to read our information leaflets or any letters we may
send to you?
Please let the receptionist know and we can offer you support by
providing interpreter services if you have difficulties hearing, or if English
is not your first language. We can ensure that letters are produced in
larger type to assist you if you have any sight problems.