Noticeboard

DATE FOR YOUR DIARY - SATURDAY 23RD SEPTEMBER - FLU CLINIC

We are now taking bookings for our flu clinic which is being held on Saturday 23rd September.

We are also holding a shingles/flu clinic for those of you who are eligible for both vaccines on 23rd September.

Please contact reception on 01271 329004 to check whether you are eligible and to make an appointment.

NATIONAL PATIENT SURVEY - RESULTS

Thank you to our patients who completed the national patient survey for Brannam Medical Centre. We have now received the results and would like to share these with you. Please click here to view the results.

MJOG

We use a messaging system called MJOG which allows us to contact our patients by text and voice message. We have been using this to invite our patients in for their seasonal flu vaccinations, chronic disease recalls and also for appointment reminders.

We would like to make our patients aware that if you receive a voice message starting 'This is a message from Brannam Medical Centre' it is a genuine message from us and please listen to the message all the way through and you will be able to respond.

If you do not wish to receive messages in this way, please contact the reception team.

National Diabetes Audit (NDA): Helping to improve diabetes care

Brannam Medical Centre is taking part in an important national project about diabetes care and treatment in the NHS. Please click here for more information.

BLOOD PRESSURE APPOINTMENTS

Please remember to arrive at least 5 minutes before your appointment to give your heart rate a chance to steady. Please wear loose clothing and refrain from Caffeine and Nicotine for at least 30 minutes prior to your Blood Pressure appointment.

Welcome to Brannam Medical Centre

We are a forward thinking patient centred practice offering continuity of care for all patient groups. We are one of the region's leading training practices with a diverse skill mix of highly valued healthcare professionals and support staff. We aim to offer excellent accessibility for both your long term care and more urgent medical needs.

To order your repeat medication via SystmOnline please click here or via our email please click here.

Brannam Medical centre Prescription update during the pandemic

Unfortunately we are not able to offer a delivery service for medication. If you are in receipt of the Vulnerable Patient letter from the NHS, please follow the instructions in the letter. The advice is still to ask a friend, relative or neighbour to collect if for you.

If you have requested a prescription from us, please be assured that we will get it done and sent electronically to your chosen pharmacy. Our phone lines are extremely busy at the moment so please avoid calling us to simply see if your prescription has been processed.

Please DO NOT stockpile medications. This can lead to shortage of items, making it difficult for pharmacies to obtain them. Order your medication at the normal time.

Rescue packs for patients with respiratory conditions

Some accurate information has been circulating in the public domain regarding special 'rescue packs' for patients with pre-existing respiratory conditions such as asthma or COPD.
Patients will already have a COPD/asthma rescue pack if they are in the cohort of patients that this is intended for. Patients are being advised not to contact their GP practice for a rescue pack if they have not had one before.

Patient Record sharing changes

We will be making some changes to how we share data, this will only be within the Barnstaple Alliance and will take effect from 29th March. For more information please read the letter attached below.

Patient Letter - Record Sharing

Coronavirus National Guidelines -Telephone Triage Appointments

Due to the current Coronavirus pandemic, all GP Practices have been advised to move to a telephone triage system to reduce the number of patients attending the practice. This means when you call the practice you will not be automatically given an appointment and we will try and deal with your problem over the phone. Please be reassured that if you do need to be seen face to face then we will arrange this. We will continue to offer urgent blood tests, investigations and referrals when required. If you have a new persistent cough or temperature please use 111 online or visit www.Gov.uk for the most up to date information and advice. You must not attend the Practice if you have these symptoms. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Coronavirus advice

Stay at home to stop coronavirus spreading

Everyone must stay at home to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

You should only leave the house for 1 of 4 reasons:

shopping for basic necessities, for example food and medicine, which must be as infrequent as possible
one form of exercise a day, for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household
any medical need, or to provide care or to help a vulnerable person
travelling to and from work, but only where this absolutely cannot be done from home

Important

These 4 reasons are exceptions – even when doing these activities, you should be minimising time spent outside of the home and ensuring you are 2 metres apart from anyone outside of your household.

Symptoms and what to do

Do not leave your home if you have either:

a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)

To protect others, do not go to places like a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital. Stay at home.

Use the 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do.

Only call 111 if you cannot get help online.

For information on:

You can now receive help, advice and treatment for your health problems at a convenient time for you.

Patients can access safe and efficient advice for lots of health conditions and symptoms on our eConsult website 24/7.

If you need further advice or think you may require treatment you can now consult with your GP online! All you need to do is fill out a simple form about your problem and a GP will get back to you within 2 working days.

You can also request further sick certificates (sick notes), discuss recent tests or get help for other administrative issues at a time that is convenient for you.

Your GP will email you back within 2 working days unless a different method of contact is more appropriate. Please ensure you have provided your email address so your GP is able to get back to you.

Your completed form will be sent to your registered GP unless they are unavailable. If your registered GP is absent your form will be forwarded to an available GP who will get back to you within 2 working days.

You are unable to book appointments or order repeat medications via eConsult, however you are able to do this online by registering with SystmOnline and using the buttons at the bottom of this page.

Please note - eConsult is not suitable for emergency or severe health problems.

The opportunity for a Partner and Salaried GP has become available!

For more information please click on the Job vacancies tab on the right.

CLOSURE OF CAR PARK

FROM 3rd FEBRUARY TO OCTOBER

Building work on our extension to the medical centre will start on 3^rd February and continue through until October. During this period the car park will be significantly reduced in size to accommodate plant for the builders. It will be closed to all patients for Health and Safety reasons. Parking will only be available for the doctors in order for them to carry out home visits. There is a large public car park adjacent to the medical centre. We also ask patients not to park on the turning circle in front of the pharmacy as this should be kept free for emergency ambulances. We apologise for the inconvenience.

Better for you, Better for Devon Survey

The NHS and local authorities in Devon, Plymouth and Torbay are working together to improve the health and wellbeing of local people.

Help shape the future for health and care in Devon by sharing your views as part of a major engagement programme.

Following the publication of the national NHS Long Term Plan, Devon is developing a local version of the plan, called Better For You, Better For Devon.

The plan will make sure we are fit for the future, providing high-quality care and better health outcomes for people and their families, through every stage of life.

Thank you for sharing your views.

GP Patient Survey

The 2019 National Patient Survey results are in......

To see how Brannam Medical Centre scored please click here. Thank you very much to all the patients who completed the survey.

Register with us

If you would like to join our practice you can collect a registration form from the surgery or download the form online. Click here to find out more

How are we doing?

Your feedback is extremely important to us as we are always trying to improve the service we offer to our patients. Click here to see how you can let us know how we are doing.