28 Beaumont Street

June Newsletter 2021

 

Welcome to our website.  We hope that you find it useful, informative and up to date. Please do take time to look through.

We would like to welcome Joana Stenning as our new practice nurse. Jo joins our nursing team of Everton ( Ev) Francis and Shehnaz Akhtar, our Health Care Assistant . The team are able to see patients for a range of treatments/ advice including: 

 

  • Hypertension reviews
  • Asthma reviews
  • Diabetic reviews and starting insulin
  • Dressings
  • Travel advice
  • Dietary advice
  • NHS Health checks
  • ECG
  • B12 injection
  • Blood pressure review
  • Childhood immunisations
  • Shingles and Influenza vaccination
  • Blood tests

Welcome also to Archie Green, our new patient advisor and administrator. He joins Michelle, Jasmine, Shadia, and Val in the patient advisor team.

General Practice Data for Planning and Research ( GPDPR) 

GPDPR (General Practice Data for Planning and Research), a program of work undertaken by NHS Digital, has led to many concerns and questions for patients. For more information please see the NHS Digital's web page- link below. Currently GPDPR has been delayed until 1 September 2021 and we will continue to update you as we are told more.

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-collections-and-data-sets/data-collections/general-practice-data-for-planning-and-research

 

The Surgery is Moving!

As a small practice we really value our individual identity and recognise that part of that comes from working out of the much loved and characterful property that we are currently in. Sadly, delivering quality primary care services is becoming increasingly difficult in our current premises. This was the situation before the global pandemic, but Coivd 19 has cemented the unwelcome truth that our premises  are not really fit for modern NHS care moving forwards. We are approximately 43% undersized.  There is little or no scope for providing new community level services in the city out of our current premises ( which leaves them defaulting to remaining at hospital level).

The Northgate development is located at the junction of Cornmarket and Market Street, including three floors of non- college provisions as part of the Jesus College development. Agreement by the Oxford Clinical Commissioning Group ( OCCG) has been given and a lease signed for a GP surgery to be constructed, primarily at basement level, but with entrance and additonal spaces on the ground anf first floors. This will enable the co-location of 28 Beaumont Street, 27 Beaumont Streeet and King Edward Streeet surgeries. Whilst we are co- locating we will remain  as three separate practices and you will be able to see the same clinicians and nursing team as previously. This is a  unique opportunity in the cente of Oxford to dramatically enhance the primary  care building facilities, associated services and working conditions for patients and staff. It responds to the very poor  condition of the exisitng three surgeries and will provide modern  fit for purpose facilities which will benefit patients by bringing together health and social care staff to organise treatment and deliver patient centred care. This move will support and enable the practices to achieve their shared vision: retaining our own individual identities, excellent accessibility and continuity of care with named docrots.

The partners from all three practices are genuinely excited at the prospect of finally realising their aim to offer primary care from modern. spacious and well appointed facilities. Acutely aware of the scarity of new builds in the city centre we know this is a unique opportunity. This scheme provides a solution that both safeguards and significantly enhances the provision of primary care for the current and future population in the area.

It is anticpated that we will be moving to the new building at the end of the year. Please keep an eye on the website for more details.

 

How to Obtain Evidence you Have Had Your Covid 19 Vaccinations.

The most straightforward way to have evidence of your COVID-19 vaccinations is to download the NHS App and register for access to your health record. You can find out more here.

  • The NHS App allows users to access a range of NHS services on their smartphone or tablet. It was launched in 2018 and offers services including symptom checking and triage; appointment booking; repeat prescription ordering; access to patient records; national data opt-out; and organ donation preference.Your COVID-19 vaccines will be listed under 'Acute Medicines' and you will need to have both of your vaccines detailed.
  • If you do not have a smart phone and require proof of Covid vaccination please phone 119. They will send you  a letter detialing your Covid 19 vacciantions. Please allow 5 working days for this service. 

Please do not ask the surgery to provide evidence of your Covid vaccination status. Both the NHS app and the letter sent via 119 contain QR codes which provide proof of vaccination for travel. A GP letter will not contain this information.

 

Still Requiring your Covid 19 Vaccination?

The surgery has now finished vaccinating those patients who are 50 years and older as well as younger patients in eligible cohorts, i.e. those with chronic conditions. If for any reason you have missed your call from the surgery or are under 50 and still to receive your vaccinations you can book these via the NHS national booking system. The national system is now calling all patients 25 years and over, but this is moving quickly and so please watch their website for details of when vaccinations are open to those aged under 25 . For more details go to the NHS Coronavius website : 

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/book-coronavirus-vaccination/

 

It's only June, BUT - we are planning our flu campaign !

 

We aim to start our flu vaccination campaign for 2021/22 in mid September of this year. Please do not call the surgery, but wait for us to call you and also watch our website for more infroamtion. The start date will be determined by our vaccine delivery date, and in the past we have found that this can change. We would encourage all eligible patients to come forward when called as promptly as possible as this will really help us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smoking Cessation Services:

Following a period of consultation by Oxfordshire County Council’s Public Health Team on the re-modelling of smoking cessation services, there is now a new provider, Solutions 4 Health, working across Oxfordshire.  This means that in the practice we will only be offering very short consultations for smoking cessation and will be advising patients to make contact with Smokefreelife Oxfordshire.  The practice is no longer able to prescribe medication to help you to stop smoking but Smokefreelife offer drop in clinics with fully trained advisors and are able to offer Nicotine replacement Therapy. Details are:

Smokefreelife Oxfordshire

Telephone 0800 246 1072 or 01865 238 036

Email info@smokefreelifeoxfordshire.co.uk

Text QUIT to 66777

Website www.smokefreelifeoxfordshire.co.uk

DNA’s (Did not Attend)

During the past month 51 appointments were wasted due to non-attendance.  This is increasing each quarter.  Please help us to reverse this trend. If you can’t keep your appointment please cancel it so others can utilise this precious time with our Doctors and Nurses.

Patient Access (On-Line Services).

We would encourage all our patients to sign up for our online services- this will enable you to order repeat prescriptions, make or cancel appointments and view parts of your medical records.  At the moment it is not possible to make online appointments with our nursing team.  You can sign up for this service via our website, or call into the surgery.

Contact Details

Please can you inform us if your contact details change.  From time to time we may have to speak to you urgently and this can be very difficult if we don’t have an up to date telephone number, either a land line or mobile number, or both, is very helpful. Unfortunately we are not able to leave messages on answer machines.

If you provide us with your mobile phone number we may use this to send you reminders about your appointments or other health screening information.  Please let us know if you do not wish to receive reminders on your mobile.

Did you know?

As part of efforts to save money within the NHS, we encourage you to buy treatments for minor ailments rather than have them prescribed. Some ailments can be dealt with effectively by a pharmacist. You will not necessarily need to be seen by the Doctor for minor ailments.

The following can be bought at a reasonable cost over the counter at retail pharmacies:

Antihistamines; Chloramphenicol eye drops; Aqueous cream; Hydrocortisone; Medigel;  Aveeno;  Aciclovir  cream; Oilatum;  Fybogel type products;  Colpermin;  Dioralyte, sachets;  Mebeverine;  Loperamide;  Anusol cream and suppositories; some thrush preparations; Co-codamol;  Paracetamol;  Ibuprofen tablets/ suspension and gel; Athlete’s foot preparations; Threadworm (family treatments), Wart preparations; Olive oil ear drops; Lacri-lube; Hypromellose;  Opticrom Sodium; Chloride Nasal Drops; Panoxyl; Head lice preparations.