RAINWORTH SURGERY
PRACTICE INFORMATION LEAFLET
Healthcare for all the family
Drs Huggard, Bolsher, Wilkins and Bartholomeuz
Rainworth Primary Care Centre
Warsop Lane
Rainworth
Nottinghamshire
NG21 0AD
Telephone: 01623 794293
If you have an Emergency, such as:
Chest pain; severe shortage of breath; if patient unconscious – dial 999
Option 1: for appointments, visit requests, results
Option 2: leave message to cancel appointment
Option 3: leave message to order repeat prescription
Press 0: to speak to a Receptionist
Fax: 01623 799218
Web address: www.rainworthsurgery.co.uk
Use your NHS appropriately
Choose Well
Make sure you choose well –
get the right treatment for you and help the NHS do its job
Did you know that every time you attend the Emergency Department (A&E) at your
local hospital, it can cost the NHS £124? You may not be aware but your practice is
charged for patient A&E attendances.
Please remember A&E is ONLY for real emergencies – Accident & Emergency
NOT Anything and Everything.
It is important to remember that A&E and 999 services are only for life-threatening and
emergency conditions. That is why the NHS has put in place other services to help you and
your family if you have any of these common complaints: colds, coughs, sore throats, upset
stomachs, aches and pains.
There are other local services available if you have a minor illness, ailment or injury, and need
advice or treatment.
Self- care
NHS 111
Pharmacy
GP
A&E or 999
For more information pick up the leaflet
‘Right Care, Right Place, First Time’
Or the card:
‘Choose Well’
Walk-in Centre, PC24 – Kings Mill site
This is open between 0800 and 1930 hours, it is a Nurse led service and you will either be
seen by an ANP (Advanced Nurse Practitioner) or Nurse Prescriber. There is no need to ring
during the day-time, just go to PC24, by the side of the Emergency Department. There may
be a wait depending upon how busy they are.
Patients are also triaged from the Emergency Department to the Walk-in Centre.
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WELCOME
Welcome to Rainworth Surgery. We have designed this booklet to help you get the most out of
the services that are on offer at this surgery. Please keep the booklet available for future
reference, but should you require further information please feel free to contact the Practice
Manager.
Proposed merger with Sherwood Medical Partnership
This followed the retirement of Dr Corbyn on 30th April 2015, after 32 years with the practice.
However, the full merger did not take place in April 2016 and on the 1st July 2016 Rainworth
Surgery again became a separate practice but working collaboratively with SMP in the
provision of Saturday morning clinics.
HISTORY OF THE SURGERY
The surgery itself historically dates back to the early 20th century when it served the whole
area of Rainworth, Blidworth and Ravenshead, then known as Fishpool, basically serving the
needs of the mining community. As the population expanded over the years the practice
separated into one surgery supplying the needs of the Rainworth population and another
surgery supplying the needs of the Blidworth and Ravenshead patients. The new Primary
Care Centre opened its doors on 23 April 2007, housing the existing Doctors Practice, PCT
Administration team, District Nursing team, Health Visitors and Community Child Health team.
The old health centre lasted over 30 years and saw many changes. In the new building there
is an in-house chemist, more doctors consulting rooms, enabling them to have one each and a
specific room for the midwife, double the number, and size, of nurse consulting rooms and a
minor operation suite, also the car park has nearly tripled in size. There is a specific room for
Counselling and Speech Therapy, the latter is a new service offered here which has been
possible due to the new build; these are sited on the first floor and are accessible by the
disabled as there is a lift on site. The surgery serves a registered population of approximately
six thousand patients and we have four partners working in the practice. We consider
ourselves to be a progressive practice seeking to achieve and maintain our standards of
patient care.
We aim to give a high quality service that is appropriate to your needs; this leaflet tells you
about our services and some of the standards of service we aim to achieve.
The Doctors
Dr Susan E Huggard
Regular days of work:
Dr Kirsten J Bolsher
Regular days of work:
Dr Kerrie Wilkins
(Female) MB ChB (Manchester 1983) DRCOG, Family Planning
Certificate, DFSRH 2011
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
(Female) MB ChB (Leicester 1993) MRCGP, Family Planning
Certificate
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Regular days of work:
(Female) MB BS (Newcastle 1995) DRCOG Family Planning
Certificate
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Dr Dayani N Bartholomeuz
Regular days of work:
(Female) MBBS (Colombo), MRCGP, DRCOG, DFSRH
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
The days of work given are the doctor’s regular days, but these may be subject to change due
to annual leave or sickness.
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Practice Manager: Mrs Julie Moyes – Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Practice Nurses: Mrs Hazel Shaw, RGN – five days
Miss Sara Black, RGN, BSc Hons – Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Phlebotomist/HCA: Mrs Caroline Valentine – five days
Reception/Administration Team: Mrs Cheryl Murray, Data Quality/IT Manager, Miss Sharon
Ridgwell, Location Manager, Miss Alison Rose, Miss Linda Harrison, Mrs Susan Ashford, Mrs
Vickie Welch, Miss Leanne Gilby.
Apprentices: Miss Georgia O’Leary, Miss Jade Hornsby
Secretarial Support: Mrs Claire Kerry
THE PRIMARY CARE TEAM
Location Manager, or Practice Manager - will deal with any general problem you may have
regarding the services we provide.
Reception Staff - they will organise your appointments. The reception team prides itself in
being courteous and will try and help you wherever possible. The receptionists have a
responsible job and they often work under a great deal of pressure, so please allow for this.
Anything you tell them will be treated in absolute confidence, if you are unsure whether to
consult your doctor, nurse, or health visitor etc, the reception staff will be able to advise you. If
you are in doubt about anything, ask the receptionist. If she does not know the answer she
will ask someone who does. Please help her to help you!
Practice Nurses:
Hazel: Providing chronic disease (LTC – Long Term Conditions) management clinics, cervical
smears, health promotion, adult vaccinations and immunisations, ear-syringing.
Sara: Monday – Friday (not Tuesday) provides nursing attention for dressings, removal of
sutures, child/adult vaccinations and immunisations, cervical smears, health promotion, new
patient checks, venepuncture, blood pressure, ear-syringing, Hypertension monitoring, ECG’s
etc.
Phlebotomist/HCA – we provide a service for taking blood tests so that on the vast majority of
occasions patients can have their blood tests done very shortly after seeing a doctor, negating
the need for returning another day with another appointment. She has also been trained in
taking blood pressures, carrying out ECG’s, 1st part of LTC checks, giving flu and pneumonia
injections and ear syringing. These all being as instructed by the doctor.
Community Nursing Team - carrying out treatment within your home environment. Offer
expert nursing care in the home, including assessment of your needs, co-ordinating care to
fulfil those needs, advice and support on any matter of concern to patients and carers. They
take referrals from the hospital, GP’s and other agencies. They can be contacted on 01623
791035 between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday - Friday.
Midwives - provide maternity services. They are involved in antenatal and postnatal care,
offering support and education and helping mothers and their partners prepare for parenthood.
Health Visitors - are registered nurses who have undergone further training in health
education and promotion and they can offer support and advice on a different range of health
issues. The child health clinic they hold gives parents the opportunity to discuss issues in
relation to the health and development of their child. If some parents are unable to attend the
child health clinic and have particular concerns regarding their children then home visits can
be arranged.
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Accessing our Services
Consulting times by Appointment (Surgery hours may vary)
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday* **
Thursday
Friday
8.30-11.30am
8.30-11.30am
8.30-11.30am
8.30-11.30am
8.30-11.30am
1.30-3.30pm
1.30-3.30pm
1.30-3.30pm
1.30-3.30pm
1.30-3.30pm
3.30-6pm
3.30-6pm
3.30-6pm
3.30-6pm
3.30-6pm
*We are closed certain Wednesday afternoons for protected learning time from 12.15pm; this
is advised via prescriptions, Jayex board and Posters.
Saturday morning clinics are held at Crown Medical Centre (Clipstone/Forest Town) 2 in 4
Saturdays, Farnsfield Surgery 1 in 4 and Rainworth 1 in 4 Saturdays. It is still possible for
patients to still access appointments on Saturday at both Crown and Farnsfield.
HOW TO REGISTER WITH THE PRACTICE
You may register with the practice if you live within our practice boundary, you will be asked to
produce your medical card, or alternatively, to fill in a form for each member of the family. You
can specify a preferred GP but must appreciate this would be subject to availability. Upon
registration all patients are allocated a named, accountable GP responsible for your overall
care, usually the GP you have been registered with. A text message will be sent to you within
21 days giving your named GP, if you do not receive a text message please ask at reception if
you wish to know who this is. At the time of registration you will be invited to come to the
surgery for a registration medical, this will give us information on your present medical
condition while we await the arrival of your records from your previous GP. Please bring
photo ID and proof of address, ie utility bill etc, also for children 7 years and under please
bring the Red Book when registering in order that we can record their immunisations.
Registration Form available on line.
APPOINTMENTS TO SEE THE DOCTOR
Patients are seen by appointment only. Our aim is for you to be seen by the doctor within 48
hours to meet NHS guidelines whether your appointment is urgent or not.
A number of GP appointments are available to book on-line at www.rainworthsurgery.co.uk
when posted on the computer, others, urgent appointments, will be available on the day. The
GPs will telephone triage the same day appointment requests and address them accordingly.
Please make sure you give the receptionist your up-to-date telephone number.
This will allow you to speak with the GP and jointly make a decision on the best management
of your concern. If an urgent appointment is needed your GP will book one for you for that
day.
There will still be routine appointments for booking ahead through the practice reception and
Online; these are 10 minutes in length.
We no longer have sit and wait appointments.
If you have not yet registered for Online Access then please speak to a Receptionist
regarding this – we have targets to meet, please help us to achieve them.
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Appointments are 10 minutes in length and we would aim to see you within 30 minutes of your
appointment time, however, please bear in mind that delays can happen, for example a doctor
may be called out of the surgery to attend an emergency, if this happens we will endeavour to
give an explanation and offer an alternative appointment if you choose not to wait.
If you are unable to keep an appointment please let us know as soon as possible, this
will allow us to offer it to someone else who may be in pain. You can cancel
appointments by ringing the surgery, or cancel on the surgery website:
www.rainworthsurgery.co.uk, please speak to the receptionist to set up a User name and
Password for you. We lose approximately 3 days per month of doctor’s surgery time by
patients failing to turn up or cancel an appointment.
Emergency appointments will be allocated as need dictates; this may not be the GP of your
choice. In the afternoon it is the duty doctor, and you may not be able to see the doctor of
your choice.
HOME VISITING GUIDELINES
In order to ensure that the best use is made of your GP services please attend the surgery
whenever possible. If you need advice, you can contact the practice or NHS111.
GP visit recommended:
o The terminally ill.
o The truly housebound patient for whom travel to premises by car would cause
deterioration in their medical condition.
GP visit may be useful:
o Following a conversation with a health professional, it may be agreed that a seriously
ill patient may be helped by a GP’s visit.
GP visit is not usual:
o Heart Attack – severe crushing chest pain. The best approach is to call an emergency
ambulance. DIAL 999.
o Common symptoms of childhood: fevers, cold, cough, earache, headache,
diarrhoea/vomiting and most cases of abdominal pain. These patients are usually well
enough to travel to the surgery. It is not harmful to take a child with a fever outside.
o Adults with common problems, such as cough, sore throat, influenza, general malaise,
back pain and abdominal pain are also readily transportable to the doctor’s surgery.
o Transport arrangements are the responsibility of patients or their carers.
If you would like to request a home visit please telephone the surgery on 01623 794293,
giving as much information as possible so the doctor can evaluate the urgency of the call.
Please make your call as early as possible after 8.30am and note that any requests for
home visits should be made before 10.30am.
The doctor can see at least 3 patients in the time taken to do a home visit as each visit takes
four to five times as long as a surgery consultation. Home visits, therefore, are reserved for
the elderly, the housebound and those deemed by the doctor too ill to attend surgery.
REPEAT PRESCRIPTIONS
How Do I Order A Repeat Prescription?
You can order on the surgery website: www.rainworthsurgery.co.uk – you will need to have a
User name and Password created before you are able to log on to do this. Please contact
reception – it is very easy.
Use the prescription-ordering box in reception to post your order, please order all required
items together. Prescriptions will be ready for collection after 4pm the following day.
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We are only able to take telephone requests from housebound patients, these should be rung
through between 10am-12.15pm, Monday – Friday on 01623 794293, select Option 2 and
leave your message. Please ensure that you have all the relevant information necessary to
order your repeat prescription.
The local chemists have prescription ordering and collection services – please arrange with
them if you wish to take advantage of this. This does take slightly longer, you should allow 48
hours to collect from the chemist.
Electronic Prescribing
You can now have your prescriptions sent electronically to a pharmacy of your choice. You
don't need to come to the practice to collect your repeat prescription, saving you lots of time.
Your prescription will be ready for collection in 48 hours; your prescription will be sent directly
to your nominated pharmacy. Please allow 24 hours for the pharmacy to process the
request. If you want to sign up just ask your pharmacist or ask a member of staff.
OUT OF HOURS SERVICE
After 6.00pm each evening and up to 8.00am the following morning, weekends and bank
holidays the practice is closed. Please call 111.
You will be required to provide full information about your problem and once triaged your
information may be passed to DHU (Derbyshire Health United) for a call back, you may
possibly be asked to attend at Primary Care 24, situated on the Kings Mill site, if this is
deemed appropriate, or in extreme circumstances a home visit may be arranged. If you feel
unwell out of hours your first contact should be 111.
You should not go to A&E unless it is a more serious emergency ie broken bones, severe
chest pain, etc.
APPOINTMENTS TO SEE THE NURSE
Appointments with the practice nurse are at 10-minute intervals.
The practice nurses run the following clinics: childhood immunisations – you must bring the
Red Book, routine adult injections, cervical cytology, LTC management – chronic obstructive
airways disease, asthma, diabetes, heart monitoring, stroke, NHS Health Checks –for those
aged 40-74, well person checks, new patient checks, over 75 assessment and travel health
advice – the length of these appointments is tailored to the clinic.
Please telephone reception and they will be happy to book you an appropriate appointment.
CHAPERONE POLICY
You can always have a relative or friend with you when you see your GP or Nurse; you can
also ask the practice to provide a chaperone. If you would like a chaperone present please
ask the receptionist when you make an appointment to see your GP or Nurse and the practice
will try and arrange one.
YOUR MEDICAL RECORDS
The practice uses computers for record storage, repeat prescribing and preventative care.
Please note we are a paperlite practice and do not use paper notes during consultation, we
are in the process of summarising all patient’s medical information onto the computer in strict
adherence to NHS guidelines. Your medical record may be utilised in audits undertaken in the
surgery, this is mostly to provide information as to where we, as a practice, stand against
Updated November 2016
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national targets for provision or uptake of services, any outgoing audits are anonymised – we
are the only ones to know the patients names selected. Audit is a means of checking the
electronic summaries of new patient records for: allergies, immunisations, operations,
conditions, and special information etc to see that it has been correctly entered to enable the
doctor to have an informed record of a patient they do not yet know. Also for example audits
are electronic stretched searches to determine the number of diabetic patients for example,
insulin dependent or not, or asthmatic patients who have not had an asthma check in the last
year, these will form part of a register within the practice in order that we can eventually call
and recall those patients for their review as a matter of course.
CONFIDENTIALITY
Confidentiality is a condition of employment and written into our staff contract, we provide a
confidential service to all our patients including under 16’s. The only time we might have to
consider passing information on without your permission is to protect you, or someone else,
from harm. We would always try to discuss this first – please ensure we have your correct
telephone number. All staff are duty bound to maintain confidentiality at the risk of dismissal.
If you are ringing on behalf of another patient for information the reception staff will ask for
consent from the patient, verbal over the telephone will be accepted as long as the staff can
hear it. If this is ongoing the patient will be asked to put their consent in writing for our
records.
Please be assured we will not release information regarding you to external sources, including
mortgage or insurance companies, without your signed form of consent. All data held is strictly
confidential under the terms of the data protection act.
Your records are not sent out of the practice until such time as you leave and they are
requested by NHS Shared Business Services, East Midlands, Medical Records Department,
in order for them to be forwarded to your new practice. This is done by secure courier.
GP Extraction System – Care.Data
NHS England has taken the decision to close the Care.data programme. You may have heard
that the government decided to close down the Care.data project after Dame Fiona Caldicott,
the National Data Guardian for Health and Care, asked them to consider the future of the
programme. A review published on 6 July 2016 puts forward recommendations for an eightpoint consent model for patient data sharing with separate opt-outs for patient data used for
research and for data used for running the health service. The government remains committed
to realising the benefits of sharing information and this work will now be taken forward by the
National Information Board, in close collaboration with the primary care community. We will
watch and listen for further developments and advise patients accordingly in the future.
Summary Care Records
A new way of caring for you in an emergency, others can see it if they care for you too – it is
your right to choose whether to have or not to have a Summary Care Record. You may have
already received letters asking if you wish to have this created.
A Summary Care Record is electronic, meaning that other Healthcare staff involved in directly
caring for you are able to see it. They will only see the information they need to do their job
and their details will be recorded.
If you decide to have a Summary Care Record it will contain important information about any
medicines you are taking, any allergies you suffer from and any bad reactions to medicines
you have had.
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Updated November 2016
Giving healthcare staff access to this information can prevent mistakes being made when
caring for you in an emergency, when your GP practice is closed or when you are away from
home in another part of England.
Your Summary Care Record will also include your name, address, date of birth and your
unique NHS number to help identify you correctly.
You may want to add other details about your care to your Summary Care Record. This will
only happen if you ask for the information to be included. You should discuss your wishes
with the healthcare staff treating you.
Summary Care Records for patients at this practice will begin on 29th August 2012, with letters
having been sent out from the beginning of the year. The completed forms for those who
have opted out have been returned to the practice and coded appropriately on the computer
system. A Summary Care Record will be created automatically for you unless you have
completed an opt-out form.
Children will automatically have a Summary Care Record made for them. If you do not want
your child to have a Summary Care Record you will need to fill out an opt-out form on behalf
of your child and return it to your child’s GP practice. In some circumstances your GP may
feel it is in your child’s best interests to have a Summary Care Record. For example, if your
child has a serious allergy that healthcare staff treating your child should know about.
You can change your mind at any time. Please speak to a receptionist.
If you choose after we have made your Summary Care Record that you do not want it –
please speak to a receptionist.
If you do not want a Summary Care Record an opt-out form is available at reception, or you
can download one at www.nhscarerecords.nhs.uk/options. Once you have completed the optout form please return it to reception.
If you require any further information please ask a receptionist.
For more information about Summary Care Records and your choices phone the Summary
Care Record Information line on: 0300 123 3020.
SHARING OF ELECTRONIC PATIENT RECORD
This is used for Sharing Information between care services providing care for you eg GP /
District Nurses / Podiatry.
It only applies where services use SystmOne Computer System.
Eg: Say you are receiving care from all of the above, you want the GP and DN to share
information with each other and you want both of them to know your progress with the
Podiatrist, BUT you don’t want the Podiatrist to see any details recorded by the other 2.
You can choose NOT to share your electronic record with other services and if so will need to
sign the relevant form for this to be recorded in your record.
NOTE: Your decision can be changed at any time.
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REFERRALS, LETTERS AND REPORTS
When your doctor has referred you to a hospital department he/she will usually send the letter
directly to the consultant, however, if the appointment is urgent or is a private appointment you
will be asked to collect a letter at the reception desk to take with you when you attend the
clinic.
For those patients with Private Medical insurance please tell the doctor as you may wish to
arrange a Private Referral.
Some examinations and reports are not covered by the National Health Service and a fee will
be payable. A list of standard British Medical Association fees is available from reception;
please ask if you are not sure.
MINOR SURGERY
Many small ‘lumps and bumps’ are surgically treatable at the practice. Please make an
appointment with the doctor for an initial diagnosis to be made; following this a further
appointment will be made with a doctor and nurse for this to be carried out.
TEST RESULTS
You are advised to find out the results of any tests you may have had by calling at reception
personally, or telephoning, after 2pm each day, the receptionist will ask your date of birth, or
address, in order to confirm your identity. The results are disclosed only to the person
concerned, or a child’s parent or legal guardian.
TRAVEL ADVICE
Currently we are unable to offer travel advice and vaccinations, however, our practice nurse
will be undergoing training in the next few months when we will again be in a position to offer
this and you will be updated.
If you require any vaccinations relating to foreign travel you should visit NHS Choices using
the link http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/1071.aspx?CategoryID=67
This takes you to the page 'Which travel vaccinations are free?', scroll down to the section:
'Which travel vaccinations do I need?', click the link 'Fit for Travel', opening a long list of
countries, click on the country, or countries you require information for. This will open a page
giving a wealth of advice and which immunisations are needed for that country. You should
print this information out to bring to your appointment.
Make an appointment with the nurse for the immunisations needed, bringing the printed
information with you including which immunisations are needed.
If you choose you can make arrangements to attend a Travel Clinic, you should check how
much they will charge.
You should allow 8-weeks before travelling for your appointment.
CHRONIC DISEASE MANAGEMENT (LTC) CLINICS
Practice nurses manage such illnesses as asthma, chronic obstructive airways disease,
diabetes, hypertension, heart and stroke clinics. Nurses are also available for dietary advice,
monitoring weight loss and help with stopping smoking.
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Updated November 2016
For patients with COPD a service has been developed by the Met Office called Healthy
Outlook COPD Forecast Alert Service, for more information on the Healthy Outlook COPD
forecast alert service just go to www.metoffice.gov.uk/health
.HEALTH PROMOTION CLINICS
It is our policy to encourage prevention of illness and we invite patients to come for health
checks. The practice nurses runs these clinics and they are by appointment only, please ask
at reception for details.
ANTENATAL CLINIC
Antenatal clinics are held every Thursday afternoon, run by the community midwife, through
an appointment system. The midwife takes care of you through the pregnancy and provides
care before, during and after childbirth. The first antenatal clinic attendance requires a longer
time than an average consultation so a special appointment for the first time must be made,
the receptionist will be able to help you there. Pregnancy tests are available at the chemist an early morning sample of urine is required. These tests are not normally carried out by the
National Health Service unless there is a medical reason. If the test is positive please make an
appointment to see the midwife at approximately 8-9 weeks in order to arrange the first blood
tests at approximately 9 weeks.
BABY CLINIC
The health visitors and community paediatric nurse offer health care to parents and babies at
Baby Clinic every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at Rainworth Children Centre, Rainworth
Water Road, 1.30pm – 3pm. They will also arrange parentcraft and postnatal sessions and
hearing assessments. Contact Health Visitor Kim Oram 01623 791051, or Jackie Caunt on
01623 791052.
PIP GROUP
The practices patient participation group – Patients In Practice, meeting every 2/3 months, in
the summer months it may be an early evening meeting and in the winter months it is an
afternoon meeting. There is a Notice board in the entrance – please take time to look and see
what items are on the board as you enter and leave the building, also the board in the front of
the waiting room along with a suggestion box. Check out the website for the results of the
Patient Survey, or to take part in any current survey (carried out ad hoc).
If you are interested in joining the group please contact Yvonne Purdy, Secretary, on 01623
472252, or Lynn Hall, Chair, on 01623 468460. If you would like to be involved but are unable
to get to meetings perhaps you would be interested in joining a ‘Virtual Patient Group’ via
email? Please complete the ‘Contact Form’ on the surgery Web Site and return it to the
Surgery.
SELF HELP FOR MINOR AILMENTS
COLDS:
These are caused by a virus infection for which there is no known cure; antibiotics have no
effect. Symptoms are troublesome but, in normally healthy people, not dangerous and include
fatigue, high temperature, runny nose, sneezing and often including sore throat and cough.
Symptoms may last for a week or longer and treatment includes drinking plenty of fluids, rest
and, if you have a headache or high temperature, taking regular paracetamol (Calpol or
Disprol for children).
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COUGHS:
Most coughs, particularly in children, are caused by viral infections and antibiotics are
unhelpful. Most seem to get worse at night. Drinking plenty of fluids helps. Cough mixtures
are often unhelpful. Paracetamol should be taken if there is a high temperature. Most will
settle in about a week; however, if they do not or there is difficulty breathing; large amounts of
phlegm being coughed up or the patient appear generally unwell, the doctor should be
consulted.
SORE THROATS:
The majority again are caused by a virus infection and only about one in ten people will
require antibiotics. The most effective treatment is gargling with soluble aspirin (provided you
are not allergic to this or taking medicine that interacts with it). Symptoms usually last for
about five days and might be accompanied by a high temperature. See your doctor if
symptoms persist or are severe.
INFLUENZA (‘FLU’):
This is a virus infection that causes a high temperature with sweating, shivering severe
fatigue, headache, and often generalised aching. Some people might also experience
vomiting. Rest (in a cool room), drinking plenty of fluids and taking regular paracetamol are
essential. Most of the symptoms will subside after about seven days, but the fatigue might
persist for a week or two after. The illness is extremely uncomfortable but, in the majority of
people, not serious.
DIARRHOEA AND VOMITING:
Again, this is usually caused by a viral infection. Adults and children should take plenty of
fluids preferably with one of the oral rehydration powders – Dioralyte, Rehidrat or Electrolade
– to avoid dehydration. Kaolin and morphine and similar preparations are not recommended.
Consult your doctor if the diarrhoea does not appear to be settling after three or four days.
Babies in particular can become dehydrated quite rapidly if diarrhoea and/or vomiting persist
and advice should be sought within the first 12-24 hours.
HIGH TEMPERATURE:
Many illnesses can cause a high temperature including those mentioned above. Adults should
take paracetamol or aspirin (unless you have been told to avoid aspirin), Ibuprofen, drink
plenty of cool fluids and keep clothing and room temperature to a minimum until symptoms
subside. Children should take paracetamol (this includes Calpol and Disprol), clothing
removed and the room temperature reduced as far as possible. If the temperature still remains
high, dab the child’s body with a sponge soaked in tepid (not cold) water.
OUR PATIENTS CHARTER
Our practice is committed to providing you and your family with quality health care.
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You will be treated in a friendly and courteous manner by all our staff.
You can expect confidentiality to be maintained at all times.
We aim to see patients within 30 minutes of their scheduled appointment and if this is
not possible you will be informed of any delays.
You can expect to be given an urgent appointment with an unspecified doctor within 24
hours of the request and you should be able to see a doctor for a routine appointment
with 48 hours.
We offer free health promotion services.
All children are offered immunisations.
Annual health checks are available to those over 75.
Cervical smears are recommended every three years for those aged 25 – 49 and
every five years for those aged 50 – 65. A reminder is sent to eligible women.
We will provide training for all our staff to improve our services to you.
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If you require a chaperone present during your consultation please inform the
receptionist when you attend for your appointment.
PATIENTS HAVE RESPONSIBILITIES TOO….
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Please keep your appointment, if you are unable to attend please let us know as soon
as possible.
Do make more than one appointment, if more than one patient needs to be seen, when
you come to the surgery.
Please remember that a prescription is not always necessary with every consultation.
Please request out of hour’s home visits for Emergencies only and routine home visits
for those that are too ill to come to the surgery.
If you are unwell out of hours you should contact the appropriate service ie NHS
111 before going to A&E.
Please be patient with the receptionists. They are doing their best and are only
following the doctor’s instructions.
You have a responsibility to look after your own health, exercise regularly, have a
healthy lifestyle and watch your diet. Please ask the doctors or practice nurse for
advice.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Car Parking: The Primary Care Centre, this is not just the doctors surgery, has a
patient/visitor car park which has a number of disabled parking spaces in front of the Chemist,
these should be kept free at all times for those eligible to use them. When there are no
spaces in the car park and the waiting room is empty it causes patients to wonder why – often
this is because there are a number of visitors to the site attending meetings.
The centre has meeting rooms which may be in use throughout the day making the car park
extremely busy. We do apologise for any inconvenience and hope that you will bear with us.
If the car park is full and you need to park on the road please make sure you do not cause a
safety hazard or obstruct visibility. We have approached the County Council to ask if they
could put yellow lines down but they are unable to do so.
Entrance: The entrance to the building is automatic with doors which open outwards – please
be aware of this.
Toilet Facilities: All toilets are both Unisex and Disabled friendly.
Animals: Patients are reminded that no pets (other than guide dogs) are permitted in or on the
premises.
Mobile Phones: When in the surgery please ensure that your mobile phone is switched
off. This is especially important during your consultation with the doctor or practice nurse.
Loop System: A Loop System pad is available from Reception; please ask if you need it taking
into a consultation with either doctor or nurse.
Medical Records Access: This practice follows current legislation with regard to patient access
to records, Data Protection Act and other confidentiality matters. Your medical records do not
belong to you but to the Secretary of State for Health. In reality the responsibility for your
records is passed down to the various health bodies which produce and store your records.
The Data Protection Act allows you to ask to see any records containing information about
you; this includes your medical records. If you want to see your records you will need to put
your request in writing, you do not have to say why you want to see your records, however
you should say if you plan to take legal action based on the contents. Once you have
requested, in writing, to view your records then a convenient time and date will be arranged. If
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you would like help to access or view your records you can ask the local Patient Experience
Team (incorporating Complaints and the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)) to help
you. If your doctor feels it would be upsetting or adversely affect your mental health, you may
be refused access until you can demonstrate you have put in place the necessary support
systems. You may be charged a maximum of £10 to view your records in the practice; this is
to cover staffing and administration purposes. If you require further information please contact
the Practice Manager. Please be aware that medical information may be used for audit
purposes. If you do not wish this to happen please notify a member of the reception team.
Your Rights to Information: The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) was passed on 20
November 2000. Under the Act it gives members of the public the right to know how public
services are organised and run and how much they cost. This information is set out in a
publication scheme.
From 1 January 2005 General Practice must respond to requests about information it holds.
However, the request will have to satisfy a number of conditions. For further information
contact the Practice Manager.
Zero Tolerance: This practice operates a Zero Tolerance Policy which sets out how the
practice deals with violence and aggression; we do not tolerate abuse, violence or aggression
towards our staff, either physical or verbal.
Equality and Diversity Policy: This practice is committed to equality opportunity for all staff and
patients regardless of age, race, gender, disability, faith, sexual orientation or any other
grounds. Applying equally to the treatment of patients, other agencies, professionals and
other people who have contact with the practice. We expect that all patients and staff are
treated with Dignity and Respect when on practice premises.
Smoke Free Policy: The practice upholds the CHP Smoke Free Policy applicable for the
Rainworth Primary Care Centre site. There is clear no smoking signage both externally and
internally within the premises, also at the vehicular and pedestrian access points onto our site.
SUGGESTION/COMMENT BOX
The practice has a Suggestion/Complaints Box in the Waiting Room which is monitored daily
(when the script box is emptied). These are reviewed and dealt with accordingly. The
practice is always happy to receive constructive suggestions.
PRACTICE COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE
We care about what you think and are happy to receive your views on the service that we
provide. We welcome complaints; they help us to improve the service we give to patients.
Your comments will be totally confidential and there is no need to give your name and address
unless you would like a response.
The practice operates an in-house complaints procedure. In the first instance please contact
the practice manager by letter, telephone or in person, so your complaint can be investigated
and dealt with quickly. It is our policy to give you a full explanation and advise you of the
outcome.
If we are unable to resolve the problems you may wish to contact someone independent. The
Patient Experience Team (incorporating Complaints and the Patient Advice and Liaison
Service (PALS)) can be contacted for information, support or advice about local health
services: they can also help you with Compliments, Comments, Concerns and Complaints. If
they cannot help resolve your concerns they will advise you how to make a complaint.
Alternatively, you can write to:
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NHS England
PO Box 16738
Redditch
B97 9PT
Telephone: 0300 311 2233 (Mon-Fri 8am-6pm excluding Bank Holidays)
Email: [email protected]
IS THERE A TIME LIMIT? Yes. The time limits are set by the NHS and are as follows:
Within 12 months of the date of the incident that caused the problem or within 12 months of
becoming aware of the incident.
Please remember, the quicker you complain, the easier it will be to investigate the facts.
USEFUL CONTACT INFORMATION
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Area
Team
NHS England
Birch House
Ransom Wood Business Park
Southwell Road West
Rainworth
Nottinghamshire
NG21 0HJ
Telephone: 0300 300 1234
www.england.nhs.uk
NHS 111
Call 24 hours on
Telephone: 111
Textphone: 18001 111
www.nhs.uk/111
Out of Hours
NHS 111 – 111
If you need to be seen they will refer you
on to:
Derbyshire Health United (DHU)
Primary Care 24
Kings Mill Hospital
Sutton-in-Ashfield
NG17 4JL
NHS Emergency Dental Treatment:
NHS England Local Area Team
Derbyshire & Nottinghamshire
0300 300 1234
or
NHS 111
Patient Experience Team
NHS Mansfield and Ashfield CCG and
NHS Newark and Sherwood CG
Balderton Primary Care Centre
Lowfield Lane
Balderton
Newark
Nottinghamshire
NG24 3HJ
Telephone: 0800 028 3693, Option 1
Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm
NHS Complaints Advocacy Service
POhWER
0300 020 0093
(charged at local rate)
The Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health (CPPIH) Patient and Public
Involvement forums
www.cppih.org
Patient Experience Service
www.newarkandsherwood.nhs.uk/contactus/complaints
NHS Complaints Advocacy Service
POhWER – advocacy, making your voice heard. POhWER is a charity and membership
organisation providing information, advice, support and advocacy to people who experience
disability, vulnerability, distress and social exclusion.
http://www.pohwer.net/
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PRACTICE AREA
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