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PRACTICE CHANGES
Welcome back DrMacKinlay Dr Kerr whohave both returned after the birth of their babies.. The sad news is that Dr Jim MacKay leftin Augustand Dr Hansa Anindo is leaving at the end of September and Practice Nurse Linda Evans retires in November!We wish them all well for the future!
On a positive note we have a new locum with us,Dr Sarah Al-Hassani, a new full time Advanced Nurse Practitioner, Ashleigh Daniel, and Practice Pharmacist, Melissa Byrnes starts in October, and Practice Nurse Angela James starts in November. We wish you all a warm welcome to Cruden Medical Group!
These changes are going to help the practice move forward to provide an even better service to our patients. So our reception staff will be asking you more questions to ensure you see the right person for the right problem! A bit of a challenge for us all - but with your co-operation we will all benefit in the end! SO PLEASE HELP US TO HELP YOU! More details below!
‘FLU VACCINES!
Can you believe it’s that time of year again? We have received our vaccines so book your appointment as soon as possible.
If you are aged 65 or over on 1st April 2017 you should have your flu jab or if you are under 65, have Diabetes, heart disease COPD, on Immunosuppressant medication or serious health problems – you can get a FREE flu vaccination!
Asthmatics – if you are NOT on Steroid medication you are NOT entitled to a free flu vaccine – sorry!
SHINGLES VACCINES
If you were born within the following dates
02/9/1935 - 01/9/1939
Or 02/9/1941 -01/9/1945
Then you will probably be receiving a phone call asking if you would like to have a
FREE Shingles vaccine.
You only need oneShingles vaccine so please let the staff know if you have had it already. You can contact us first if you want to book an appointment!
REPEAT PRESCRIPTIONS
PLEASE remember when ordering repeat prescriptions that it may take 2 WORKING DAYS FOR THE PRACTICE TO PROCESS. It may take longer for your chosen pharmacy to have your medication ready – especially if you want to collect it from the Hatton Surgery.
Please order your medication in plenty of time.
We’ve had technical problems beyond our control with our repeat prescription email address – so our profuse apologies if your request has not been actioned .
New email address is :
ZERO TOLERANCE
Patients are asked to be polite and courteous to all staff at all times. Verbal abuse, persistent rudeness and any physical threat may result in you being put off the list.
PATIENT CHECK IN
Please let the receptionist know that you have arrived at the surgery before taking a seat in the waiting room. IF YOU HAVE MORE THAN ONE APPOINTMENT PLEASE TELL THE RECEPTIONIST!
MISSED APPOINTMENTS
Ever wonder why it takes so long to get a routine appointment? Each day many patients fail to cancel their appointment. This means YOU may not be able to be seen!
PLEASE LET US KNOW AS SOON AS YOU CAN IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO ATTEND SO THAT IT CAN BE OFFERED TO SOMEONE ELSE.
If you repeatedly fail to attend your appointment you may be asked to leave the practice.
URGENT APPOINTMENTS
You can telephone the Surgery Monday-Friday from 8.00am-6pm. You will be asked if your appointment request is urgent or routine. Please let the receptionist know if you feel it is medically urgent. Our receptionists are not clinically trained and will not be able to triage your symptoms.
If there are no appointments left a message will be put to the Duty Doctor who can contact you and assess the clinical need.
APPOINTMENTS
1 APPOINTMENT = 1 PATIENT -1 PROBLEM
Our appointments are 10 minutes long and in that time the doctor has to Listen, Examine, Investigate, Diagnose, Treat, Refer and also update your medical record. If patients try to discuss many separate issues then this can end up with the consultation feeling rushed – which is dissatisfying. Things may be missed;the consultation runs late which then has an impact on other patients who are waiting and creates an unmanageable workload for the GP.
If you feel you need a longer consultation then ask for a longer appointment when you book.
PATIENT IDEAS
We are always glad to hear of any suggestions youhave to make your visit to us as pleasant as possible. If you have any ideas, comments or suggestions please drop us a line!
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
The Practice will be closed from
1.30 pm for PLT on:
Wednesday 26th October
Wednesday 9th November
Also CLOSED ALL DAY
Monday 26th September 2016
Monday 26th December 2016
Tuesday 27th December 2016
Monday 2nd January 2017
Tuesday 3rd January 2017
FOR SERIOUS MEDICALPROBLEMS THAT CANNOT WAITUNTIL THE PRACTICE OPENS AGAIN ON THOSE DATES AND
ON WEEKDAYS FROM 6PM – 8AM ANDWEEKENDSFRIDAY 6PM UNTIL 8AM MONDAY
PLEASE CONTACT
NHS 24 ON 111
FOR MEDICAL EMERGENCIES
ALWAYS DIAL 999
HOW TO ENSURE YOU GET TO SEE THERIGHT HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL
“Why does the receptionist ask me about my medical problem?”
We are currently training our receptionists to ask more questions when you contact the practice for help.
Cruden Medical Group has a range of professionals with lots of expertise in different fields. The team includes GPs, Advanced Nurse Practitioners, Practice Nurses, Health Care Assistant, Practice Pharmacist, Health Visitor and Community Nurses and Reception staff (often forgotten!).
You do not always need to have an appointment with a GP.
As you are aware, waiting times can be very long to see a GP so if we can use the expertise of the other people in the practice this will help cut down the waiting time so a great benefit to you!
You see who you need to see, the clinical team see the right people – the reception staff can help guide everyone to the right person and so reducing the workload and stress. Great result for EVERYONE!
The Advanced Nurse Practitioner can deal with many of the things a doctor can. This will mean the GP can deal with more intricate cases. She can prescribe; refer etc so no need to worry about that!
The Practice Pharmacist can help with medication reviews and will be able to help with Diabetic Care. The Practice Nurses can deal with Chronic Disease Management, injections, dressings. Smears and so much more!
The Health Care assistant does not just do blood tests. She can take Blood Pressures, do ECG and more! So it is not always necessary to see the Practice Nurse.
We think you can see where we are going here! By using the right person it frees more experienced staff to get on with the things they have the experience in and so on!
Please help us to signpost you to the right person by co-operating with the receptionists when they ask you what the problem is. Sometimes advice from out with the practice e.g. pharmacist or optician might be recommended. Everything is confidential. So please remember our receptionists are here to help YOU.
IT’S WHAT THEY DO BEST!