Practice News
Continuation of Covid Protection Precautions
To ensure the continuing health and safety of our staff and patients we shall be following the very latest guidance from NHS England, as issued on 15 July as per the link below, which means that all current Covid protection measures in place at the surgery will continue without change including the mandatory wearing of face masks.
Infection rates have increased in recent weeks and whilst many have now been vaccinated the surgery is a place where people come when they are ill and potentially vulnerable. Our protection methods have worked well throughout the pandemic thus far and it is therefore sensible for those measures to continue.
We thank everyone for their continued support in this regard.
How to get your NHS COVID Pass letter
Guidance has now been published on how to get your NHS COVID Pass letter and you should follow this link.
We at the surgery are unable to issue COVID Pass letters as they might not be acceptable at your destination therefore we advise patients to allow sufficient time to follow this guidance ahead of their need.
Jasper the Friendly Therapy Dog
Recent visitors to the surgery may well have met Jasper the Therapy Dog owned by our very own Dr Chris Udenze.
Jasper has the wonderful ability to help with patients who have anxiety problems and hs been getting rave reviews. As one patient recently wrote and said "thank for you for introducing us to your therapy dog - the amazing Jasper" and "my symptoms still persist however having some time with Jasper helps with my trauma and leadin a better life".
This is just one of many positive comments about what is an alternative way of helping patients and we're delighted to be doing something just a little different to help patients.
Data Sharing
For more information about this visit NHS Digital
UPDATE 08/06/2021 - Data Extraction has been delayed until 1st September 2021
As of 1st September 2021 your data will be shared with NHS Digital to help improve health, care and services
Patient data from GP medical records kept by GP practices in England is used every day to improve health, care and services through planning and research, helping to find better treatments and improve patient care. The NHS is introducing an improved way to share this information - called the General Practice Data for Planning and Research data collection.
NHS Digital will collect, analyse, publish and share this patient data to improve health and care services for everyone. This includes:
- informing and developing health and social care policy
- planning and commissioning health and care services
- taking steps to protect public health (including managing and monitoring the coronavirus pandemic)
- in exceptional circumstances, providing you with individual care
- enabling healthcare and scientific research
Any data that NHS Digital collects will only be used for health and care purposes. It is never shared with marketing or insurance companies.
NHS Digital will not collect any patient data for patients who have already registered a Type 1 Opt-out in line with current policy. If this changes patients who have registered a Type 1 Opt-out will be informed.
If you do not want your patient data shared with NHS Digital, you can register a Type 1 Opt-out with us. You can register a Type 1 Opt-out at any time. You can also change your mind at any time and withdraw a Type 1 Opt-out.
Data sharing with NHS Digital will start on 1st September 2021 *updated 08/06/2021
If you have already registered a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice your data will not be shared with NHS Digital.
If you wish to register a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice before data sharing starts with NHS Digital, this should be done by returning this form to us as soon as possible, by *1st August 2021 to allow time for processing it. If you have previously registered a Type 1 Opt-out and you would like to withdraw this, you can also use the form to do this. You can send the form by post to us or by email to kmccg.guildhall.surgery@nhs.net
If you register a Type 1 Opt-out after your patient data has already been shared with NHS Digital, no more of your data will be shared with NHS Digital. NHS Digital will however still hold the patient data which was shared with us before you registered the Type 1 Opt-out.
If you do not want NHS Digital to share your identifiable patient data with anyone else for purposes beyond your own care, then you can also register a National Data Opt-out (also known as Type 2 Opt out).
What do you need to do?
If you are happy for your data to be shared as above, and haven't previously Opt'd out - you do not need to do anything.
Type 1 OPT-OUT - to stop sharing your details with NHS digital (or to opt back in, if you have previous opt'd out)
Complete this form OPT OUT FORM (or you can also complete this to opt back in).
Then, either;
- Hand the form into reception
- post it to us to: Guildhall Surgery, 65-69 Guildhall Street, Folkestone, Kent. CT20 1EJ
- Email it to us at kmccg.guildhall.surgery@nhs.net
Type 2 OPT-OUT (Also known as National Data Opt-out) - If you do not want NHS Digital to share your patient data with anyone else for purposes beyond your own care, which has been already shared with them (or to opt back in, if you have previous opt'd out)
NOTE: You can only do this via the following ways - as a GP practice we cannot opt you out of Type 2 (National Data Opt-out)
You need to, either;
- Call 0300 303 5678
- or, complete the online form via YOUR NHS MATTERS
Sharing Medical Information with the Government
GP Appointments - A bit of Reality
At a time when there is a lot of media coverage to the effect that GP's aren't very busy we thought the figures in this graphic would be interesting.
Here at Guildhall Surgery we may be operating to the telephone triage system but this doesn't mean less appointments - in fact the opposite is true. We are, and have alway been, seeing patients for face-to-face appointments where necessary and overall this startegy allows us to maximise the numbers of patients we can look after.
2nd Covid Vaccinations
Please note that any patient who has had their 1st Covid vaccination can now have their 2nd vaccination at 8 weeks instead of the original 12 weeks.
Invitation text messages for patients to make their appointments at the Civic Centre will be sent out but alternatively the surgery team will make a booking for you if you call us. Because the phones are currently so busy we would ask that calls regarding Covid vaccinations are made during the afternoons.
NHS statement regarding Face-to-Face appointments with GP's
We have noted the many comments in the media today after the statement by NHS England in relation to face-to-face appointments with GP's and, contrary to some of those comments, GP's, including those here at Guildhall Surgery, have continued seeing patients face-to-face throughout the pandemic in line with government and public health guidance.
Our first priority is the safety of patients and staff as we have many vulnerable patients and Covid 19 is still present. The limitations of our premises, with a very small waiting room and reception area, means we will still need to limit the number of patients in the building at one time to acheive social distancing. With this in mind, we will continue to triage patients as we have been doing very successfuly throughout the pandemic thus far but always ensuring the possibility of a well organised face-to-face appointment exists where deemed necessary for patient care.
It is already a fact that the current level of face-to-face appointments results in patients having to wait outside the surgery from time to time to ensure that we acheive Covid safety within the surgery and a return to wholesale face-to-face appointments would increase Covid infection risks exponentially. Further we are actually carrying out more consultations through current precedures that we were before the pandemic.
Please be assured that our patients interests are always at the forefront of practice policies.
Demonstrating your COVID-19 vaccination status when travelling abroad
For information on how you can demonstrate your COVID-19 vaccination status when travelling abroad please follow this link to the Government website with all the informarion.
The information you require is not available from us at the practice but will be avilable from 17 May on your smartphone using the NHS App or if you do not have a smartphone you should contact the NHS on 119 for further assistance.