Tuesday 31 May 2011

The new Out of Hours telephone number

From 1 June the phone number for the Out of Hours doctor’s service during evenings and weekends will be changing to 0300 300 2012. This number is charged at the local rate from a BT landline.
Run by Solent NHS Trust, the Out of Hours service provides urgent medical care for the residents of New Forest, Winchester, Eastleigh and Test Valley, Gosport, Havant and Fareham, Southampton and Portsmouth areas.

The Out of Hours service is manned by trained call handlers, local to Hampshire and so have good knowledge. Callers will be asked questions about their health problem (or that of the person whom they are calling about) and will record the details on a database.

The service operates between:
- Monday to Thursday: 6.30pm – 8.00am
- from 6.30pm Friday until 8am Monday
- the Out of Hours service is also available on Bank Holidays.

Only contact the Out of Hours service if you have a medical problem that cannot wait until your surgery opens.

Saturday 21 May 2011

The information screens are up and running

So for those of you not at the meeting of the Patient's Forum and who therefore missed the announcement, we are happy to say that the first of our information screens is now operational at the Waterfront surgery...

Thursday 19 May 2011

Changes to our Extended Hours

From 6th June we will be changing the extended hours we offer. This has come about due to a reduction in funding locally for Surgeries to provide a complete service which includes reception beyond 6.30pm. As a result we will only be open late on one weekday night rather than three. We will continue to provide the extended hours service on the last Saturday of each month as usual.

However, we do still intend to offer the same number of additional late appointments that we offer now by getting our doctors to work on the same night. In other words, although our flexibility has been curtailed, our capacity will not change.

Friday 13 May 2011

Open meeting of Patient Forum

Open Meeting on Thursday May 19th 7.30pm at the Parish Hall:
 

The Patient Forum are holding an Open Meeting for the Patients of the Practice. They hope to have speakers from the Hants and IOW Air Ambulance, the Waterside Cancer Support Group and one of the Practice team, who will speak about the changes which may result from the proposed re-organisations in the NHS.

They will also report on their activities and have a discussion on their next project for the Group. There will be a Draw to help with funds and refreshments are planned.
It promises to be a good evening so please try and come. No tickets are required but only patients of the Practice should attend.

Tuesday 10 May 2011

Booking appointments - routine check-ups

As our practice size grows, the pressure on appointments grows too.
In order to help us ensure you are seen swiftly, it helps our receptionist to have an idea why you need to be seen. Our experienced practice nurses can deal with many types of appointments including regular follow-up pill checks, blood pressure reviews, coronary heart disease check-ups, asthma check-ups and COPD checks. If you ask, you may find you can been seen sooner by one of our nurses.  Please ask when you book your appointment.