SURGERY NEWS

FACE MASKS UPDATE - with effect from 20th September 2022

Due to current low levels of COVID locally, the surgery have decided to pause mandatory mask wearing for clinicians, administrative staff and patients. We may review this decision if cases increase again as we move into winter. 

Of course if you are vulnerable, or if you just prefer to do so, you are very welcome to continue to wear one. Mask wearing remains optional at the practice for staff and clinicians too.

Thank you.

 

GP Patient Survey results 2022

We are very grateful to all of you who responded to the Patient Survey this year. At such a busy time where the whole team are working incredibly hard, it really means a great deal to us all to get such positive feedback through the national survey. Thank you. Here are the latest results.  

 

How to Access your GP Practice

How to access your GP practice - A short video

 

Door Intercom has been suspended

The door intercom has been suspended Due to the low levels of COVID locally and an in increase in our staff numbers the use of the main door intercom has been suspended.   We are pleased to welcome to the practice two new members of staff, Tracy and Sarah, who join us as Care Co-ordinators.   Part of their role is to provide support to the receptionist assisting patients who are wishing to access our services.  

Medication Collections

 If you are collecting medication, please continue to queue for the dispensary window.  If however, you would prefer to wait in the waiting room, for example if your medication is not ready or there is a query which delays service, you are welcome to come inside and wait.  However, do let us know you are waiting.  

Appointments

If you need to contact a GP, you do not need to come to the surgery in person;

You can: 

• Visit this surgery website or use e-consult on this site.
• telephone the practice on 01440 820140 
• A phone or video call will be booked for you with a healthcare professional to suit your needs
• A face to face appointment is available following triage with the healthcare professional

If you have a child that has a medical condition or is unwell it is important that they get the correct treatment when they need it.  We continue to provide the same safe care that we have always done.  If you or your child needs urgent help, and it is out of hours or an emergency either call 111 or go to your nearest A&E department or call 999.

We ask for your further help as detailed below:

A significant increase in email queries and photos being sent by patients has put significant pressure on our administrative team.  PLEASE HELP SUPPORT US BY NOT EMAILING PHOTOGRAPHS OR CLINICAL PROBLEMS IN without being asked to do so by a doctor.

Please also remember the email address for any dispensary queries is sneeicb-ws.wickdisp@nhs.net

 

Appointments

Appointments are being delivered face-to-face, online and over the telephone.  

We are doing everything possible to keep our visitors and staff safe. Please help us by adhering to the following guidelines:

Appointments:  When you arrive for an appointment, please advise one of our reception team of your arrival and take a seat in the waiting room.  If you prefer to wait outside, please let the receptionist know this.

Medication Collection:  Please continue to queue at the Dispensary window between 9am and 6pm except for lunchtime when  the dispensary is closed for lunch between 1.00pm and 2.00pm.

In September 2021, general practices offered 19% more appointments to their patients than they did in September 2018.
If you’re offered a telephone appointment, you’ll be called by the team member with whom you’re booked. If they feel you need to be seen face to face to assess your condition, they’ll arrange this.

We’re still offering many face-to-face appointments, but telephone appointments do have a number of benefits: there will be fewer people in the surgery, so there’s less pressure on parking and a reduced risk for vulnerable patients. For patients with queries that are easily resolved, this also means they don’t need to interrupt their day or take time off work for an appointment.

One of the benefits of telephone appointments is that we can make calls in a suitable order. This means we can call patients with urgent problems quickly, rather than asking them to wait until the end of the surgery when we have a gap. It also means we can allow more time for difficult conversations. Some patients will hear difficult news during their appointment, and flexibility over the timing of appointments means that we can allow time to support patients who need it.

There have been increases in the number of appointments needed over the last few years. This is partly because there’s an increase in the number of registered patients. The average number of patients per practice has increased from 6,610 in 2010 to just over 9,000 in 2021.

The changing makeup of general practice teams, and working with other practices in local networks, helps to widen the team of healthcare professionals with specialist skills who can be accessed quickly by our patients.

As our practice teams change, so does the role of the GP. As multi-skilled healthcare professionals become increasingly available within our teams, you may be offered an appointment with a specialist practitioner rather than a GP.

Just as drug treatments for some conditions have changed, so too has the way we’re involved with patient care for those conditions. Where previously painkillers would have been the only available option for some, newer treatments have resulted in positive outcomes for patients. We can offer proactive care ensuring that we’re monitoring wellbeing with a reduced need for painkiller prescribing.

Social Prescribers

What are Social Prescribers

Social Prescribers support people by connecting them to the social activities, clubs and groups that are on offer in the community.

As part of the initiative we are pleased to say we now have access to a team of two social prescribers who will be very pleased to offer help.  If you need help or support you can talk to a member of staff here at the surgery who will refer you to the social prescribers.

 

Newsletter

Coming soon.

 

GP+ Appointments

Suffolk GP+ is for people who urgently need a doctor’s appointment or are unable to see their GP during normal GP hours. Appointments can be made via Reception during our usual opening hours. Please note: patients cannot refer themselves to this service. The service is staffed by local Suffolk GPs and Nurse Practitioners  in Bury St Edmunds, Sudbury, Glemsford, Haverhill and Newmarket is an NHS service delivered by the Suffolk GP Federation. You will be given a booked appointment and will be seen by a suitable local GP or nurse who will have access to your medical records (once consent is given).

 

Collecting your medication

We dispense medication to nearly all of our patients. As a result, our dispensary can be very busy and we appreciate that at times there can be quite a queue when collecting medication.

We undertook a survey over a one-month period and the graphs below show the busiest days of the week and also the busiest times of the day. This may be of some use when deciding on when to collect your medication. Clearly, Friday mornings are the busiest.

Medication collection by days of the week

Please note; During the period 1.00pm to 2.00pm our dispensary will be closed so that our dispensary staff can take a lunch break.  

Your Named GP

Each patient in the Practice has a named allocated GP.  If you are unsure of your named GP please contact Reception and they will let you know who it is.  If you have a preference for a particular named GP please let Reception know.  Please note that you do not have to see your named GP for each appointment and you can request to be seen by a specific GP for individual appointments.