Drug Monitoring Blood Tests During COVID
Dear Patient,
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the NHS has been working to reduce non-mandatory patient contacts to reduce the risk to patients and staff at this time. If you have received a text message or letter from the surgery advising you that your interval between tests can be extended then please arrange your blood test for drug monitoring on the date advised in the message. A clinician has reviewed your notes and previous test results to ensure that increasing the time between your tests is safe and appropriate in the context of the pandemic based on guidelines developed with local Specialist teams.
Due to COVID-19 we do not currently have phlebotomists coming in to the practice as they have been re-organised to help patients across Shrewsbury. The method by which you will now organise a blood tests depends on whether you are a shielded patient or not shielded. Please note shielding applies to those who have received confirmation from their GP, Consultant or NHS England via letter that they are in the highest risk category and should isolate at home (this is different to the social distancing recommended for those in at-risk groups or over 70s). When you speak to the Surgery to arrange your blood test booking please make it clear to the receptionist if you are a shielded patient.
Non-shielded patients: When you call up to arrange a blood test we will send your blood form to the phlebotomy team and then you simply need to call 01743 492510 to arrange your blood test. This will take place at The Lantern, SY1 4NG. Please note due to demand your blood test will need to be booked at least one week in advance.
Shielded patients: Due to being in the highest risk category your blood test will be undertaken at St Michael's clinic, Shrewsbury SY1 2HE or at home depending on clinical need. In order for these appointments to be booked please call the Surgery and we will arrange this for you.
If you have further questions about this then please contact the Surgery and speak to a member of staff. Please note that we are not able to provide routine blood tests at the Surgery at present due to the phlebotomists across all Shrewsbury Practices being re-deployed to the Lantern and St Michael's clinics. This situation may change as things evolve but it is not an issue we have direct control over.
Yours sincerely,
The Partners, Radbrook Green Surgery
Stop the panic ordering of prescriptions
Urgent appeal - please stop panic ordering prescriptions
Coronavirus - changes to appointment system
Due to the outbreak of Coronavirus some changes have been made to the way we are booking our appointments.
Appointments will only be made for 'today' or 'tomorrow' and you will be asked specific questions by the Reception team as per Public Health Guidance.
This may mean that instead of being offered an appointment a GP will telephone you. Please do not come into the Practice unless you are advised to do so by the GP.
Face to face online appointments have temporarily been suspended and have been changed to telephone appointments only.
Coronavirus
The NHS in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin and Public Health England (PHE) are extremely well prepared for outbreaks of new infectious diseases. The NHS has put in place measures to ensure the safety of all patients and NHS staff while also ensuring services are available to the public as normal.
The risk to the general public is moderate. If you have arrived back to the UK from mainland China, Thailand, Japan, Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia or Macau within 14 days, follow the specific advice for returning travellers.
Anyone who has travelled to China or places listed above in the last 14 days and develops symptoms of cough or fever or shortness of breath, should immediately:
- Stay indoors and avoid contact with other people as you would with the flu
- Call NHS 111 to inform them of your recent travel to the country
Information for the public is available at gov.uk/coronavirus
Like the common cold, coronavirus infection usually occurs through close contact with a person with novel coronavirus via cough and sneezes or hand contact. A person can also be infected by touching contaminated surfaces if they do not wash their hands.
The risk of being in close contact with a person with coronavirus or contaminated surfaces is very low at the current time, as members of the public who have visited Wuhan, Hubei province, China are currently in isolation.
Testing of suspected coronavirus cases is carried out in line with strict regulations. This means that suspected cases are kept in isolation, away from public areas of the hospital and returned home also in isolation. Any equipment that come into contact with suspected cases are thoroughly cleaned as appropriate. Specific guidance has also been shared with NHS staff to help safeguard them and others. Patients can be reassured that their safety is a top priority, and are encouraged to attend all appointments as usual.
Everyone is being reminded to follow Public Health England advice to:
- Always carry tissues with you and use them to catch your cough or sneeze. Then bin the tissue, and wash your hands, or use a sanitiser gel.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after using public transport. Use a sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are unwell.
You can find the latest information and advice from Public Health England at www.gov.uk/coronavirus.
Ranitidine
There is a worldwide shortage of ranitidine due to a recall of products. Please continue to take the ranitidine you may have at home but we will be unable to continue prescribing due to shortage. Please make contact with the surgery to discuss with our Clinical Pharmacist or GP when you have 1-2 weeks of ranitidine remaining.
CQC Rating
Radbrook Green Surgery has been rated overall good in our latest CQC inspection with outstanding in 1 area.
Prescription Ordering Service (POD)
A new and convenient way to order your repeat prescription for patients of Radbrook Green Surgery. Telephone: 033 33 583 509 Monday to Friday between 9am to 5pm. From phoning Prescription Ordering Direct (POD), please allow 4 working days before collecting your medication.
Welcome to your NEW Extended GP Service
We would like all patients in our community to be able to see a local GP or Nurse when they need to. There is a network of GP Practices within your community offering extended opening hours for routine appointments.
Call now to book a routine appointment on: 0333 222 6649
For full information on this new service please see the Extended Access tab under the Appointments heading.
New Telephone System
Changes have now been made to the messages you will now hear when calling the surgery. The reason for this is to ensure that you are seeing or speaking to the correct member of the team to deal with your problem. All staff have undergone training to provide this level of service.
Below is the message you will now hear during the daytime 08.30am - 18.00pm:
Welcome to Radbrook Green Surgery.
Please be aware that all calls are now recorded for training and quality purposes.
For medical emergencies which may require an ambulance please press 1 at any time during this call.
To book an appointment please use our Online Access Service available through our website. If you are not yet registered for this service, please speak to reception who will be able to assist you.
If you wish to speak to a receptionist for any other reason please Press 2.
Please note: If you speak to a receptionist to book an appointment you will now be asked if you feel comfortable informing us of the reasons for your call including the medical condition that requires attention. The GP's are requesting this information so they can prepare for your consultation and to ensure that you are booked in with the correct clinician or member of the nursing team.
To order a prescription using the Prescription Ordering Direct service telephone 03333 583 509 and an advisor will be able to process your request.
This service is available between 8.00am - 5.00pm Monday to Friday. The NHS 111 service is also available to you 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Patient Messaging Service
We have started using our new patient messaging service.
We will be able to communicate with you via text and email, using automated technology that will enable us to contact you much more quickly and effectively. This will free up our staff to deal with those tasks only a human can do! It is important that you keep us up-to-date with your current mobile phone number.
Examples of how it will improve our communications include:
• Automated appointment reminders 24 hours before. You can cancel your appointment by text using the word CANCEL, which immediately frees it up for others to book.
• Targeted health promotion campaigns, such as flu clinics.
• Reminders to attend specific clinics, e.g. diabetic, health checks, etc.
• NHS-required information such as smoking status: you can simply reply by texting one word to give us your status.
• Urgent communications: for example, if a GP calls in sick first thing in the morning, all patients in that surgery will be advised by text within minutes.
Of course, you can opt out by sending us a message or advising reception, but you would not be benefiting from the quick and non-intrusive communications from us that the system provides.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
Named Accountable GP
From 1 April 2015, practices are required under the GMS contract, to allocate a named, accountable GP to all patients, including children. All patients registered at our surgery are allocated to a named GP. Please ask your doctor, or the reception staff, who your named GP is. Should you express a wish for this to be changed to another GP we will do our best to accommodate your wishes.
Please be aware that this does not affect your ability to make an appointment with any of the GPs in the practice of your choosing.
IMPORTANT NEWS - action required:
We are now using ‘Patient Access’ for booking appointments and ordering of REPEAT medication.
Please register for this service by coming in to the practice and asking the receptionist for a registration letter which will give you your unique registration details. You will need to bring in ID (e.g. Passport or Driving licence).
PATIENT ACCESS TO ONLINE RECORDS
Radbrook Green Surgery Plan to meet GMS/PMS 2014-15 Contractual Requirements for Patient online Service
Current online patient services
GP System Supplier - Egton Medical Information Systems Limited (EMIS)
GP System Version – EMIS Web
It is a contractual requirement for GP practices to offer and promote to patients: online booking of appointments, ordering of repeat prescriptions and by 31st March 2015 access to summary information (as a minimum) in their patient record.
This Practice currently offers patients facilities to book, view, amend, cancel and print appointments online. We also offer the facility for patients to order online, view and print a list of their repeat prescriptions or medicines and appliances.
STATEMENT OF INTENT
This Practice plans to offer patients facilities to view online, export or print any summary information from their record relating to medications, allergies, adverse reactions and any other items agreed between the practice and the individual patient, from 1st January 2015, subject to the availability of NHS GP systems and software.
We will publicise and promote our online services to our patients through the practice website, practice waiting room leaflets, posters and the Patient Participation Group by 1st January 2015.
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